If you’ve ever wondered how to keep up with the changing landscape and demands about what employees want, you’re not alone. You may read articles with the latest research, order books that explain differences in expectations among Millennials, Generation Xers and Boomers—and still struggle with how best to engage and retain your most important assets—employees.
While some organizations seek insights offered by various surveys from Gallup or SHRM, others apply individual assessment tools such as Myers-Briggs or DiSC personality types or behaviors. Yet in our post-pandemic world, leaders come away baffled about what is really most important to employees today.
According to PwC’s Global Workforce Hopes and Feras Survey 2022, the most profound shift in expectations comes from younger workers. Today, their highest priorities are training, development, flexibility and autonomy. While working from home, many workers got used to integrating their work and personal lives more fluidly. Today’s employees value where and how they work. Their desire for remote work options plays a pivotal role in decisions. Younger workers, especially, want to be included, and they care about climate change, social justice and transparency on just about everything. They are clear about what they want, are vocal about their desires—and readily ask for raises and promotions. When their expectations aren’t met, younger workers are three times as likely as older workers to switch to a new employer in the next 12 months.
Consider what is contributing to the workforce mindset and remind yourself to explore the why behind people’s behavior. Younger workers have witnessed the impact of technology obsolescence and don’t want that to happen to them. Their desire for greater access to learning opportunities and digital/technical skill development helps them bridge gaps to ensure they stay viable. Even so, the top factors that help to retain employees are the communication practices and relationships they have with their managers and co-workers.
If your current practices don’t acknowledge what workers want, consider what you might do differently to attract and retain employees.
- Communicate individually and often with employees. Provide a career roadmap and share what you envision for them in your organization.
- Clearly state and demonstrate the commitment to DE&I as well as Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) practices to align words with action. Invite employees to participate in social advocacy days and events.
- With hybrid work, rather than lip service to teamwork, collaboration and transparency, design ways to engage workers using technology such as Slack, Teams, etc. At the beginning of meetings, ask questions to help employees get to know each other, especially when onboarding new employees.
- Mentor younger workers and offer reverse mentoring to workers who may need to build technology expertise. When you give younger workers the opportunity to share their skills, you’re also offering the chance to deepen collaboration and connection.