By Lucy Allen, Trifecta Consulting Services
Well, here we go! 2023 is upon us and if the reports are to be believed (even one of my own articles) a recession is upon us. So, buckle up, it’s going to be a bumpy ride!
There is so much advice as to how to prepare, what you need to put in place, what constitutes robust future planning, but have you heeded the advice or has the run up to this moment and the challenges involved left little time to think about next quarter let alone the whole year and beyond?
I hear you. I get it!
We’ve heard many new terms in the employment world this year. We’ve had ‘The great resignation’, the emergence of ‘quiet quitting’ (or so we think) and its close cousin ‘quick quitting’. So, should there be undue concern about these terms and its effect on our businesses? One of them, yes. The others maybe not so much!
The Great Resignation
Realistically, this was always going to happen. Two years of lockdown and several furloughs later, the ending of a global pandemic is the perfect catalyst for life and career evaluation, no surprise there. Can we expect the same in January 2023? Probably. The new year always inspires a ‘fresh start mindset’ and 2023 will be no different. Hopefully, this year there won’t be such a dramatic label associated with something which happens every year.
Quiet quitting
Where do I start? Is it too strong to say I absolutely loathe this term? The definition of ‘quiet quitting’ is ‘doing the minimum requirements of one’s job and putting in no more time, effort, or enthusiasm than absolutely necessary’. What we are saying here is someone who comes to work, does their job and leaves offering no more than is required? In my opinion all businesses need people like this. They are not leaving, so why are we putting a label on this group of people and highlighting their work is not good enough in the current climate? If the work is getting done and they leave on time, why is that a bad thing? If the work isn’t getting done, well that’s another matter entirely. Why did a phrase coined by Economist Mark Boldger in 2009, now become a generational label for Gen Z or a popular Tik Tok video? It just feels that the term has been sensationalised and pulled into the mainstream.
Quick quitting
How can I put this nicely? If you are experiencing a rise or a steady flow of quick quitters, you have no one else to blame but yourselves! There I said it! There are so many things going on here:
- Your employee proposition externally is inflated and inaccurate and this is obvious the minute you start with the company.
- Hire for attitude, train for everything else?? You better! Without a robust training and internal Learning and Development strategy, you are setting yourself up for a very costly failure.
- If your interview process is not tailored to select the right candidates for your company and culture, or if your management team is under pressure so they panic hire, again this will create a bad result, not just for the long-term plans for the future, but also the health and wellbeing of your team.
- Without a process to effectively manage your candidates/applicants, you could miss an opportunity to ensure your company is at the top of their list. If you don’t ask the right questions, how will you know if they are looking at other roles, waiting for other offers or which role is at the top of their list? Without this information, they could start the role, only to quit as soon as the offer from their preferred option comes through, wasting your time and sending you right back to square one or indeed into panic recruit territory.
Consultants
My point is, it’s time to remove the dramatic terms and look at the root cause of the problems. Sometimes the answers are simple when you take a step back and look at the issue through a different lens. This is where consultants come into play. They are experts in their field. Have dedicated themselves to improving their craft. Confident enough in their abilities they have backed themselves and set up consultancy firms. Most importantly, they are a resource you use when you need to and put away until you need to draw upon their skills again.
For more recruitment and retention advice, ask to speak to Lucy at www.gcrsolutions.co.uk or email info@gcrsolutions.co.uk
