Disconnect Between Great Resignation, Employer Expectations

For better or worse, the global health crisis revolutionized the world of work. As many employees have taken time to reflect on what they’re looking for in their careers, many experts have warned of a “Great Resignation”—an exodus of employees from workplaces they feel don’t value them or refuse to respond to their employees’ changing needs and desires. Some reports indicate that up to 95 percent of employees are currently thinking about leaving their job. Other surveys found that number to be closer to the 40 or 50 percent mark. One group, however, isn’t buying it. A recent study of human resources and C-suite leaders revealed that only 8 percent are concerned that their employees will leave, and a full quarter believe that no one will quit once COVID-19 restrictions are lifted. The disconnect between these two figures is disconcerting, and one explanation, perhaps, is that leadership has an unrealistic expectation of exactly how content their employees are. “If we trust all of that other survey data, it means that HR leaders and C-suite leaders are going to be surprised with the ‘Great Resignation,’” said Elora Voyles psychologist and people scientist at TINYpulse, the organization which performed the survey. “To what extent, we don’t know yet.”