Quiet quitting: Where you’re not outright quitting your job, but you’re quitting the idea of going above and beyond.
There are many opinions on the exact definition of what quiet quitting is but, the explanation that resonates with me is: employee disengagement.
Quiet quitting is a different name for the ongoing problem of employee disengagement that companies have dealt with. The past two years simply exposed and accelerated the downward spiral of the long-standing issue in the workforce.
Since the beginning of 2020 and the start of the pandemic, we have all experienced unparalleled burnout. Our home life immediately integrated with work life; we started working longer hours, we experienced post pandemic uncertainty, defining a new normal, going through the great resignation, and adapting to different working expectations. On top of the new normal uncertainty, we were hit with record breaking inflation, soaring interest-rates, spending fear and a global unrest.
According to a survey from Indeed, two-thirds of workers believe corporate burnout has worsened and 10% of work-from-home employees are more likely to agree with increased burnout. For Contact Center agents, burnout rates are significantly higher due to their need to be always on, working long hours, dealing with negative conversations and being available for customers more than ever before.
Years ago, workplace and behavioral psychologist, Stacy J. Adams shared his equity theory which shows that employees strive to maintain equity between the input (what they bring to their job) and the output (what they receive in return).
His diagram remains relevant today. The pendulum swung too far to the input side; we need find equilibrium again.
Millions of employees worked tirelessly during the pandemic while also managing challenging personal situations on in addition to their work. For many, while the work increased, compensation, bonuses, and promotions were put on hold.
Conquering the Quiet Quitters
It is time for organizations to strive to balance the equation again. Here are suggestions on how to reimagine employee engagement in today’s hybrid workplace: Create a culture where employees can grow and thrive. If employees see their efforts rewarded and are provided the opportunity to participate in continuous learning with a clear vision of a career progression and personal growth plan, they will feel appreciated and motivated. Create a personalized and guided experience for each of your employees. Through AI and machine learning, you can address each employees’ gaps to make their learning more efficient and focus on helping them get to the next levels of their careers.
Use gamification & a fitness tracker for work to drive engagement. Most employees thrive on measuring every aspect of their lives, from steps and sleep to calories burned and mindful minutes which in turn creates motivation. Why not replicate the same experience and measurement for success at work? Create a gamified experience to track their success, level of engagement and performance while reducing uncertainty and anxiety of job performance. Employees crave immediate feedback, recognition, and rewards. Through friendly competitions companies can provide next level engagement and connectedness to everyday work.
Continuously Listen to Your Employees. Managers need to act upon continuous feedback received from each individual employee. This is when change and transformation happens. You need to be asking the right questions at the right time to the right people consistently. Give them a voice in the direction of the company and empower them and act on their feedback. You will create passionate advocates and ambassadors.
Turn managers into coaches. With the power of AI, you can support managers with focused and closed feedback loops. When combined with their emotional intelligence and creativity to become empathetic coaches and impact employee success.
Help your employees to build their personal brand. As experts, who support others, the organization is democratizing the content creation and knowledge sharing, while the employees will take it as an upgrade to their current and future value (maybe a dif. Term), and as a leverage in their career building process
Most importantly, show that you care. Companies succeed when employees are happy and engaged. Organizations cannot ignore quiet quitting. Be transparent, invest in your employees, listen to them, and show that you are listening through your actions.
If you are a manager and want to learn more on how re-engage your employees and become a better coach, humanize and personalize employee well-being, and help employees succeed, download the eBook here.
Centrical is an employee performance management solution that can provide your organization with the insights and action needed to identify when your employees are quietly quitting and how to bring their motivation back, improve performance and avoid quiet quitting from the start. Find out how we can help your organization start taking action today.
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