I realize that talent retention has been an increasing challenge for most companies – not only in technology, but in general – who have to deal with people from different generations on the team and who often lose employees with enormous potential for reasons that could have been avoided. And why is this increasing?
What I have noticed, especially after the pandemic, is a ‘veiled exploitation’ of employees, offering inadequate work conditions, a toxic environment – to use fashion jargon -, with salaries below the market and often without benefits. Today, people have more possibilities in the market and do not accept that they have to perform many functions without being adequately paid for.
Dissatisfaction can come from several reasons, but when we mess with the pocket, the “hole is even lower”. Not to mention that the employees, especially the younger ones, cannot stand silently some impositions that are made and, for that reason, end up being labeled as lazy or who do not want to work. And we know that often, it is not true.
According to the 2024 report carried out by Talent Trends, Michael Page’s recruitment and selection company, about 28% of Brazilians, even though they are satisfied with their jobs, actively seek new opportunities. This data, added to the increase in salary dissatisfaction – which went from 39% to 52% in a year -, signals an increasing dissatisfaction in the labor market.
Often, leadership loses great employees for nonsense, as it did not want to increase the salary or give some benefit – even realizing that there is merit in that employee, or because it imposed conditions that harm more than they help. These little things end up wearing out people, who start looking for other job opportunities, so that they can leave the company they are in and start in another service.
Companies need to be increasingly aware that they must change some behaviors so that they can attract and, above all, retain talents that are already part of the team. It is important to highlight that I am not saying that managers must do everything that employees want, but they need to have active listening to be able to provide better working conditions in general and possibilities for growth.
Yes, salary or financial remuneration is important, but even a good salary, one hour tires, depending on the work environment, which is basically defined by the leadership and the way in which management is carried out. In this sense, using a tool such as OKRs – Objectives and Key Results – can help in this process. You must be asking yourself: why?
The tool proposes that the team members be part of the construction of the goals, objectives and results that must be achieved at the end of the cycle, which, in addition to being important for the evolution of the company, will make each employee feel more valued, as it allows them to visualize how their work impacts the all. This greatly increases employee engagement and will be a boost in efforts to achieve the desired results.
