Why 55% of Employees Plan To Look For A New Job This Year

More than half of employees plan on looking for a new job in 2018.

This staggering fact was unearthed through a recent research effort undertaken by Achievers. The December survey of 1,724 employees in the U.S., Canada, UK, and Australia revealed 55 percent of employees plan on jumping ship this year. Why? They’re simply ready for a change.

The key to retaining these employees is identifying the warning signs early and taking a proactive, rather than reactive, approach to improving their experience within your organization.

Decreased interest

Employee retention relies on various factors. However, without an employee showing true interest in and passion for the work at hand, the rest simply doesn’t matter. In fact, 74 percent of total respondents in our survey say they’re motivated to stay in their current role due to interesting work.

Ensuring employees remain interested in their work creates a greater sense of purpose and deeper connection to their tasks and the company as a whole. And when they understand how their efforts impact the organization, dedication, motivation, and productivity naturally follow.

But it’s important to remember that humans are beings of change. Your employees’ passions, interests, and entire lives evolve over time. Believing talent who started their journey enthusiastically will always remain so is a costly retention error.

While change is obviously a natural process, it’s important to catch dips in passion before employees start looking for new jobs. Use daily polls or pulse surveys to gauge interest, engagement, and overall job experiences. These frequent check-ins open the door for ongoing discussions about their future opportunities with the company.

“Neglecting to reinforce your mission keeps employees from seeing how their work impacts the company’s overall objectives.”

Disconnect from company vision

A lack of communication surrounding company goals leads to a disconnect between employees and their purpose on the team. When talent loses sight of this vision — or never fully understand it — they become disinterested and disengaged.

Neglecting to reinforce your mission keeps employees from seeing how their work impacts the company’s overall objectives. This lack of alignment points to a lack of transparency, communication, and trust between talent, their peers, and leaders. And this can lead to disengagement and even decreased customer satisfaction.

Take loyalty program and solutions company LoyaltyOne, for example. They combatted this issue by incorporating a vision of success into the employee experience with their ‘Pass it On’ recognition program.

The program promotes interaction and communication across the company. It allows employees and leaders to publicly recognize co-workers for their hard work and accomplishments. It also enhances transparency, showing everyone why their peers are recognized and how those acts positively impact the company and its customers.

Along with public recognition, it’s crucial to evaluate if your vision is being implemented effectively throughout the company. Look to your leadership to see how they’re living it out in their own roles and promoting it to employees. Once you have a clear understanding of this, go directly to them to determine if leaders’ actions are communicating the right message.

Lowered employee morale

Employees rely on company culture to create an important sense of belonging. In fact, in North America, 76 percent cited a positive corporate culture as having the biggest impact when deciding to stay with an employer or move on, according to our recent report.

Busy schedules and hard deadlines make it easy to lose sight of the importance of culture. But it’s a living, breathing entity that takes time and energy to get right. When employees don’t feel they belong or thrive on your team, they lose intention and purpose.

It’s critical that your leadership team acknowledges they don’t own company culture; it belongs to everyone. Culture dictated primarily by leadership stunts the growth of employees, and as a result, the entire company. Allowing them to create their own sub-cultures and experiences motivates them to problem-solve, creates team-bonding opportunities, and keeps them interested in the company’s success.

Celebrate employees who display a true entrepreneurial mindset and excel in their role on a public, social platform. This reinforces a culture based on positive morale, confidence, and motivation.

Related: How CEOs Can Help Retain Millennial Employees