The Great Resignation: Who is Accountable for Employee Retention?

Let me tell you a quick story about the worst boss and worst company I’ve ever worked for. I won’t give specifics to protect the guilty, but my boss was a nightmare. He was a micromanager who required three email updates per day on the progress of projects. He also spoke to people like they weren’t human beings. There was a level of respect sorely lacking in the entire department. People felt they had to compete with each other (I believe in a healthy level of competition, but this was destructive) and often threw each other under the bus to save themselves.

Want to report something to HR? They didn’t really care. The boss was the boss. The culture was absolutely toxic. People didn’t talk to each other. There was no comradery. The organization had no growth plans and no opportunities within for people to expand their roles or move into new positions. Education was an afterthought, and onboarding didn’t exist.

Who was responsible for the Great Resignation that happened in that New York City skyscraper in April of 2016? Ultimately, it was the company closing that caused us all to leave, though we were all actively looking for other opportunities.  But, why did it close? Turns out our boss wasn’t just toxic to us, he was toxic to everyone. Clients fled and we were forced to shut our doors. Lesson learned. Keep reading though to find out ultimately who is responsible for The Great Resignation.

Retaining top performers has always been a focus in the workplace. Still, over the last year, it has quickly become a top concern for many organizations for one primary reason: The Great Resignation. Sometimes referred to as the Big Quit or the Great Reshuffle, it began in early 2021 and is an ongoing trend in which people have resigned from their jobs voluntarily–in droves.

You've likely felt the impacts of this even if you haven't quit a job yourself:

1. Gas stations and fast-food restaurants are often understaffed.
2. Grocery store shelves are stocked slower.
3. It's more challenging to get a table at your favorite restaurant.
4. You may have stayed on hold while waiting to talk to customer service longer than you ever have in the past.

But are people, like the old adage goes, leaving their managers and not their jobs? Are they unhappy with their workplace's culture? Do they want more money? Is it something else entirely? Regardless of what fuels the Great Resignation, it's essential to consider how to retain your employees and who exactly is accountable for that task.

The Great Resignation's Impact on Employee Retention

According to the US Bureau of Labor and Statistics' most recent Economic News Release, 4.3 million people quit their job in May of 2022, which is only down slightly from March of 2022, when 4.53 million people voluntarily separated from their employment. And in 2021, a record of nearly 48 million people in total quit their jobs. We're looking at a mass employment exodus, and the answer to it? Well, it's to figure out a way to retain those employees.

In 2021, a Pew Research study discovered that most workers report quitting for one of three reasons:

1) 63% of people leave because of low pay

2) 63% of people also reported a lack of advancement opportunities

3) 57% of people say they left their job because they felt disrespected.

Employee turnover is expensive. In a Gallup article, Shane Mcfeely and Ben Wigert report that "the cost of replacing an individual employee can range from one-half to two times the employee's annual salary–and that's a conservative estimate."

There are plenty of other reasons people leave their jobs–to go back to school, to take care of family, etc.–but an employer cannot mitigate those reasons. Luckily, they can address fair pay, workplace culture, and advancement opportunities, but who is responsible for this?

Who is Responsible for Employee Retention?

There is often particular stress on talent acquisition, managers with direct reports, and HR staff to focus and retain employees. But, in short, everyone in an organization is responsible for retaining employees.

Talent acquisition and hiring managers can help retain employees by developing both hiring and onboarding processes that properly reflect company culture and provide accurate job expectations and responsibilities. Managers with direct reports should help retention efforts by providing clear guidance on projects and support while maintaining a generally positive and compassionate workplace atmosphere. HR staff has a role in these areas, as well as some others, like upholding high cultural standards and providing conflict resolution when necessary. But ordinary employees–the day-to-day coworkers, the non-managers–also play a significant role in employee retention.

All of these organizational facets can and should work in tandem with one another, and that is only possible if a positive workplace culture exists.

Tips for Retaining Employees

One of the top reasons people left their jobs in 2021 was to pursue a higher-paying career, so it's crucial to consistently reevaluate things like compensation packages to ensure you're staying competitive. But there are plenty of other ways you can retain employees:

1. Conduct stay interviews: Conducting annual or quarterly stay interviews is an excellent way to check in with your employees, learn about their future career goals, and discover new ways to keep them content with your company.
2. Promote a learning culture: People invest in places where they feel their talent is being invested in. Find new ways to provide professional development opportunities and seminars, or consider other incentives like stipends for continuing education.
3. Provide advancement opportunities: It is natural for people to want to move up the corporate ladder, and many organizations do provide advancement opportunities. The secret to this is to be transparent and clearly articulate what type of opportunities might be available and when.
4. Work on culture: Thinking about your company culture is the first line of action for building a strong one. Workplace culture permeates throughout an organization, and employees intuit this culture without even realizing it. To begin curating the culture you want your workplace to have, consider asking employees to describe your workplace in 3 words during your stay interviews, and compare their answers to your vision.
5. Create psychological safety: Making your employees feel safe taking risks is called psychological safety. Safety is a basic human need, and to be their most creative and successful, employees need to feel like it is safe to take those risks.
6. Impart a sense of fulfillment: Many employees leave their jobs for other opportunities because they don't feel as if their work matters, so regularly communicate to your employees that their work is essential and why it is.

Now you have all the facts and stats about employee retention, but I challenge you to think about the other side of the situation as we all look for someone to blame for team transitions. I was in control of my situation in my formerly toxic environment. I control my own emotions and reactions. I contributed to the toxicity by not speaking up and standing up for my own beliefs. If I had a do-over, I would speak up about the silence. I would bring to light the hypocrisies. I would try to make an impactful change. I didn’t. I just left. Who’s responsible for The Great Resignation?

We all are. And that includes the people resigning.