The winds of change blow slowly, so it’s no shock that it may take up to four years for the nation’s jobless rate to fall back to a normal level of around 5%. We continue to read countless stories of downsizing, rightsizing and layoffs and many organizations have cut so close to the bone a coyote wouldn’t even stop to sniff around – there’s nothing left. When the economy comes back around though, will organizations who have been slashing and burning employees be ready for their remaining top talent to make a mass exodus? Don’t believe this is going to happen? It’s easy to predict for two reasons…the research and the vibe.
Research.
I came across the Adecco Workplace Insights Survey recently, which found that the most serious threat to organizations in this recession may be the recession’s end itself showing an indication that most employers will see a high level of turnover when the market rebounds. There have also been a lot of studies correlating employee engagement and employee satisfaction – which has a direct effect on employee retention (think Gallup). Another piece of research? Leadership IQ Group surveyed 4,000 individuals who watched colleagues get laid off and were left behind to carry on and found:
• 75% said their productivity had declined
• 70% said the quality of products/services had declined
• 81% said customer service had dropped
These numbers should make us all gasp. Imagine the revenue being thrown out the window when 75% say they get up to go to work each day knowing they’re not performing at peak levels. And imagine the great results customers and clients are receiving when the quality of products and services admittedly stinks – and there isn’t even the client service to make up for it! It’s a rosy picture that makes you want to just jump up every morning, grab a cup of joe and rush right into work cuz you’re lovin’ it!
Now for the Vibe.
Organizations that have stayed true to their values and done just about everything to keep the company going – before resulting to letting their (literal) human resources go – are going to be in good shape. Employees still have a sense of loyalty and are focused on keeping their jobs. But organizations that have slashed and burned in the human area or have not been upfront or trustworthy to their employees? They’re undoubtedly in trouble because as soon as employees see a crack in the glass, they are very likely to say, “F-You! See you later, alligator!” and take their KSA’s elsewhere.
The difference between these organizations is a difference of organizational culture and those who choose to react versus respond. There are gobs of case studies about how organizations who are steadfast in their values and organizational culture respond to adversity and challenges (think J&J and Tylenol) fare far better in the long run from a financial performance and employee engagement perspective than those who react (think Enron whose corporate value of “ethical” was carved in stone in the company lobby).
So, what can be done to combat the possibility of this F-You mass exodus? The obvious place to start is diving into the trenches and pulling together a significant retention strategy. AMA programs have been offered for years and individual consulting groups like Wonderlic can help. I was also recently introduced to a new approach at www.retentioninstitute.com that might just revolutionize the retention tools and processes. The tools and resources you can turn to are out there – and you can choose any variety of approaches to address retention… just know the bottom line is this: do something now before you turn around and find that your best players have left the building waiving a big ole middle finger at you saying, “F*&! you!”
Editor’s Note – This guest blog post is courtesy of Lizz Pellet who is the Chief Culture Officer at EMERGE International where she supports organizations in measuring culture and creating employment brands. She is the author of a handful of books and a fellow at Johns Hopkins University which means she’s smart, super smart. Lizz has also written Getting Your Shift Together: Making Sense of Organizational Culture and Change. And if you don’t like a book title like that… well, we can’t help ya.
Lizz – Even J&J is bringing out the axe, and the few people I know working there are on pins and needles. I guess you could speculate that the ones who end up staying will be relieved and just get on with their lives there, because the culture and values are so strong.
But overall, I agree with you. The challeges that most companies are experiencing right now economically are going to test the strength of their values and culture, in terms of how cost-cutting is handled, how it is commuicated, etc.
Still not seeing why the “F Bomb” and any derivation including the bird is accepted anywhere. This is very poor taste. Where are we? The frat house?
Anon for this. Don’t need to be labeled “he who doesn’t cuss in public”.
dear @you know me of http://www.lurkerlurkerlurker.com. i hear you. personally, i like cursing and i do it to make a point. that being said, what do you think of the post itself?
Honest feedback is what you’re getting here. Please don’t shoot the messenger, but:
As soon as the page opened and the guy was there flipping me off it turned me off completely. Why spend valuable time then forcing myself to sort through what may or may not be good content?
We’ve got about 5 seconds to hook the reader. 2 seconds into this post I was turned off.
Lizz -
Thanks for the post today – I tend to be a little less of a “sky is fallng” mass exodus kind of person. In my HR experience one thing has always held true – people hate change – with that most organizations we’ll see less people leave – for the simple fact – people would rather bitch about their surroundings, than change them. Studies and survies will say differently – for the simple fact, is that’s how someone feels.
The difference between feeling and doing – is very big.
What’s ashame is the comments are focused around the choice of wording instead of the content.
Do I think the language was necessary? No, but that is not what is important. There is a great article here with good content. To bad its being lost and ignorned just because of the choice of language.
The element that I think was left out was that no matter when you impliment a retention or a cultural change within a company, you will lose people. Not everyone can or will choose to deal with the changes you are implimenting. If anything, implimenting a system now to keep the remaining employees you have will make you look desperate and encourage your employees leaving. I would recommend you impliment the system when you start hiring again to show that you do care about your employees and you want them to grow with the company.
Thanks for all the comments. There are many companies that are taking a humanistic approach to these reductions.
Feel free to watch a Youtube video ERE.net produced with me talking about the “good, the bad and the ugly” examples. Its eight minutes long and I don’t use one swear word.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TecxMQ2PMuo
btw, are you folks thoughtfully measuring current levels of satisfaction for those employees that remain. Survey, evaluate and take appropriate action to keep the core organization happy.
Great article and I agree with you Lizz. There will be a talent pool leaving when the market de-funks itself. Your best people will leave, not your worst.