The famous “big resignation” continues to affect companies that implement sometimes rigid return-to-work policies. Have companies found the right balance between technology investments and a good work experience for their employees?
In a tight labor market, this is a relevant question for employers and employees. According to analyst IDC, 32% of European employees plan to leave their current employer, indicating that the “big quit” phenomenon that began in 2021 is far from over.
Microsoft, in its 2022 “Work Index Trend” report, found that 43% of employees are somewhat or extremely likely to consider changing jobs in the coming year, compared to just 41% in 2021. Similarly, 52% of Gen Z and Y professionals could change jobs this year, up 3% from 2021.
Looking for a good work experience
For respondents, the main reason for leaving an employer is the search for a higher salary. But the second reason cited is an unsatisfactory experience, according to IDC in its Future of Work survey of European employees.
According to IDC, there is a “clear disconnect” between what employers and employees define as a good work experience.
On the business side, leaders appreciate investments in collaborative technologies like Zoom, Microsoft Teams or Slack, which facilitate hybrid working. At the same time, employees are concerned about the decline of corporate culture, according to IDC.
IT decision makers, for example, have named collaboration technology upgrades as their top concern, while other staff fear how their work is being evaluated and feel a lack of connection.
Managers focus on technology
Additionally, IDC found that approximately 30% of employees who work in a hybrid form are dissatisfied with the technology tools put in place by their employer.
“The focus on technology as the sole solution to improve the employee experience is problematic, as remote employees mainly face a disparity in cultural experiences,” says Meike Escherich, Associate Director of European Future of Work at IDC.
“The success of flexible working models hinges on abandoning the old spirit of command and control in the office in favor of a culture of employee empowerment. »
Microsoft notes in its report that the past two years, in which people have experimented with working from home, show that employees can be productive and have a better life outside of work. This means that companies cannot afford to ignore flexibility and well-being.
The office five days a week
Some companies are tackling the worker experience head-on. Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky recently announced that staff can work from anywhere without being subject to in-country location-related pay cuts. He says the office as it has been known is over and company policies requiring staff to be in the office three days a week will gradually be reduced to one day a week.
But many companies ignore this new reality. Slack recently conducted a survey of 10,000 knowledge workers in the US, Australia, France, Germany, Japan and the UK. She revealed that a third of employees are now back in the office five days a week. Not surprisingly enough, the survey finds levels of work-related stress and anxiety are the highest since Slack began surveying employees in the summer of 2020.
Slack finds that the burden of in-person work five days a week falls harder on non-executive employees than on executives. Workers who have little or no ability to set their own working hours are 2.6 times more likely to seek employment elsewhere, according to the survey.
Source: ZDNet.com