The future of work is all around us. As business looks to move beyond the COVID-19 pandemic, Phil Herbert, VP HR, Sharp Electronics Europe, looks at how the world of work is evolving to meet the needs of employers and employees alike.
We found that during the pandemic, people predominantly valued job security. They might not have been in their ideal job, but security was everything. Now that economies and societies have opened up, we’re seeing an increase in employee turnover. It may be a layover from employees who wanted to move during the pandemic, but people have more confidence in the economy to move now.
Turnover is higher in areas that boomed during COVID-19, such as IT services, where there is a high demand for skills, and a supply shortage. People are moving for 10-20% salary increases and for not having to relocate physically. Some of the barriers that existed previously (around longer commutes or having to move house) have gone away.
How long the Great Resignation goes on for will be the key issue. Is this just a 6–12-month thing, or how it will always be? Will turnover levels always be this high? We’ll have to keep that under review, but it's a challenge.
Sharp Europe Solutions Help Small Businesses to Grow
At Sharp, we’re constantly adapting to meet this challenge. We’re looking at the design of our jobs, ensuring our remuneration is competitive, reviewing development opportunities, and offering more career progression.
Salary is a factor, but not the only one. We need to evolve our culture so that we’re better able to communicate and engage with employees, especially in the face of hybrid-working models. We need our people to have the right tools and set-up to work both remotely and in the office. It’s not just about pay; it’s about culture within an organisation and how you deal with people day to day. Some employees might move for financial reasons, but not everyone will if you get the culture piece right.
We ran an employee engagement survey in June 2021 which showed a positive increase on overall engagement levels across our European organisation compared to our previous one, so we're doing some things right. We’re using this data to see what we can do better and creating action plans.
We’re also getting more regular feedback from our employees through pulse surveys to see whether our initiatives are working. You need that regular feedback to see what is and isn't working; if you leave it a year or two, it’s far too long.
The critical thing is keeping things under review and being open to change. Modify your approach. Get regular feedback and if something's not working, change it. We’re in such an uncertain time. You might launch what you think is a brilliant idea, but unless you get feedback that it's working, you might have set off on the wrong course.
At Sharp Europe we work with businesses and organisations of all sizes across Europe, from smaller, agile start-ups through to larger corporations and non-commercial organisations. We understand how needs change and evolve as they grow and can provide scalable solutions that improve performance, enhance collaboration, increase productivity, and help deliver the workplace of the future. To find out more, Get In Touch.
