Companies concerned about the Great Resignation and trying to find, attract, recruit and retain talent should first do one thing: ask the candidate what they want. It sounds simple, but this doesn’t happen. Businesses offer a take-it-or-leave-it package. Instead of customizing a total salary and benefits plan, they offer a cookie-cutter, one-size-fits-all policy.
The pandemic has made us think differently. While we want to be paid well, there is more to the picture. Here are some of the things that management should take into consideration when they are interviewing applicants. If businesses are serious about getting the best talent, they need to think outside of the box and become creative. A good place to start is by offering a four or five-hour workday.
The Four Or Five-Hour Workday
There is no reason why a person has to work for eight hours a day. It's an outdated construct from the past. During the last two years of the pandemic, people have worked remotely and spent considerably more than eight hours a day working. They also put in late nights and weekends. Partly this was done, as there wasn’t much else to do during Covid-19 lockdowns. Also, there was the prevalent fear of losing your job.
It became crystal clear that pre-pandemic workers were judged by face time in the office. Now, at home, the metric is output and production. It's more important what a person does than how many hours logged in at the office or on the computer.
Since output and productivity is paramount, why is it necessary to put in eight hours? If you are able to get your work assignments accomplished and exceed expectations within five hours, wouldn’t it be fair to call it a day? Businesses have no qualms about making you work late hours if a project needs to get done. If you're ordered to put in the extra hours, it's only fair to clock out when you finish your work, and the work product is exemplary.
A four or five-hour workday would be seen as an employee benefit. It doesn't have to be for everyone. For those interested, the tradeoff is that they will have to get in on time, work diligently without any internet shopping searches and remain dedicatedly focused. If you are able to produce what is expected or exceed expectations, you’re out by around 2 p.m. or 3 p.m.
Flexible Staggered Hours
A record number of women left the workforce due to school closures and the lack of affordable childcare. A big issue during the pandemic was that many working mothers felt the pressure to leave their jobs to take care of their children. It was particularly challenging as public schools closed and the kids had to endure irritating online video classes that necessitated parental help. A flexible and staggered work schedule would smooth out these types of problems.
To accommodate working parents, particularly mothers who usually bear the brunt of childcare, wouldn’t it be reasonable to offer flexible, staggered hours? Let’s say there are dual-working parents with demanding jobs. One of the parents could start their day at about 10 a.m. after dropping the kids off at school. At the end of the workday, at about 3 p.m. or 4 p.m., the partner would leave to pick their child up from daycare or preschool.
Flexibility entails offering the person the autonomy to decide where, when and how they do their best work. LinkedIn data shows that when employees are satisfied with their company’s time and location flexibility, they are 2.6 times more likely to report being happy and 2.1 times more likely to recommend working at the company. There has been an 83% increase in job posts mentioning flexibility since 2019, as well as a 343% increase in mentions of flexibility. Job seekers look for this and other similar humanistic terms on job descriptions.
Compensation
People are tired of the games that companies play. They want to know the salary, benefits and other pertinent information before they embark upon a three- to six-month interview ordeal. They don’t want to waste their time by finding out at the last minute, after meeting with 10 people, that the offer is significantly under what they are currently earning.
A new law passed by the New York City Council, which will go into effect in April 2022, calls for employers in New York City to include the minimum and maximum starting salary for any "advertised job, promotion or transfer opportunity."
This will be a complete game changer, and bode well for both people searching for a new job and current employees. The piece of legislation pulls back the curtain on salaries, which has often been viewed as a deep, dark, hidden secret by corporate executives.
More often than not, a person will likely say that they want to earn the most amount of money possible. Job seekers want to know more. It's important for them to know about stock, options, profit-sharing plans, 401(k) contributions and all other monetary rewards.
After working remotely for two years, it will be hard to pry people from their homes. If you have to commute into New York City, San Francisco or other large U.S. cities, you need to consider the long commute and the possibility of entering a dangerous place, in which crime is high and violence possible.
Enlightened businesses have offered their people flexibility—the autonomy to choose where and when they want to work, remote and hybrid models, staggered hours, digital nomads, free college tuition, mentorship, coaching, four-day workweeks and other employee-centric offerings.
It's not enough to have a job. People want a role that offers a deeper meaning and a sense of fulfillment. They are also concerned about the values of the company. Job seekers want to work for a company that holds the same values that they do.
Enlightened Managers
The micromanaging, jerk boss is no longer acceptable. People want an empathetic leader with a high emotional-intelligence quotient. They want psychological safety, meaning that if they make a mistake, it's not career-ending nor would they get scolded in public.
People want the freedom to do their job without constant meddling. They want supervisors who ask how they are doing, listen to concerns and then actively address the issues. There should be a career path forward. Upskilling and training to help with staying relevant.
Benefits are more important than Kombucha on tap. The workplace needs to be safe, growth opportunities available, diversity, fair treatment and an environment that is inspirational for them to be fully engaged in their work. It's important to continually be challenged, learn new things and feel valued and appreciated.
Mental Health And Emotional Well-Being
Workers will no longer be taken advantage of. They won’t put up with mean and vindictive bosses, low pay, cruel treatment or a toxic environment. Employers learned the hard way—when attrition hit alarming rates. They've recognized the importance of mental health and emotional well-being. The data indicates that if employees feel cared for at work, they are 3.2 times more likely to be happy at work and 3.7 times more likely to recommend their company as a place to work.
Well-being content is also resonating with job seekers, especially women, as there has been a 146% increase in the share of job posts that mention “well-being” since 2019. Women were also 41% more likely to engage with “well-being” company posts, compared to the average post.
Organizations are beginning to include mental health benefits in their packages. Gen-Z, in particular, are looking for companies to invest in these needs. Around 66% of Gen-Z say they’d like to see more investment in mental health and wellness to improve company culture, as opposed to 31% of Baby Boomers, for example.
Businesses that are serious about finding and hiring the best people need to rip up the old playbook and offer new, enticing ways for people to do their best work. Remote, hybrid, flexible and staggered hours, job sharing, four-day workweeks, five-hour days and other initiatives would help entice people to join your organization. It will also cut down on the amount of people quitting.
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February 24, 2022 at 01:32AM
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