The resignation that gets leaders talking isn’t the one they expected. It’s the one they didn’t see coming.
“What could we have done to keep them?”
The conversation usually turns to salary, flexibility or whether another employer offered more. Sometimes that’s the reason, but usually it’s not.
Over the past few months, I’ve been working with leadership teams across a range of organisations, speaking with executives, managers and employees about what’s helping people stay and what’s driving them away. While every workplace has its own challenges, the patterns are remarkably consistent.
People become frustrated when they don’t know what success looks like, yet are still held accountable for the outcome. They lose confidence when managers avoid conversations that everyone knows need to happen. They notice when poor behaviour is excused because someone performs well, while others are expected to meet a different standard. They become sceptical when similar situations are handled differently depending on who is involved. And eventually, they stop raising issues because experience has taught them that nothing will change.
By the time someone decides to leave, they’ve usually spent weeks or months asking themselves whether staying is still the right choice.
It starts with little things that seem insignificant on their own. Feedback that’s promised but never arrives. A recurring issue that’s acknowledged but never resolved. A leader who intends to follow through but gets distracted by the next urgent priority.
None of these moments is enough to make someone leave. Over time, though, they influence whether people still believe things are going to improve.
The latest Gallup State of the Global Workplace report reinforces what many organisations are already experiencing. Globally, only 21% of employees are engaged at work, while manager engagement has fallen to 27%, down from 30% the previous year. Managers have an enormous influence over the day-to-day experience of work, so when they’re disengaged or stretched too thin, the effects are felt well beyond their own role.
The good news is that leaders have more influence than they sometimes realise.
This week, take an honest look at your own team.
- Does everyone know what’s expected of them?
- Are there conversations you’ve been putting off because they’re uncomfortable?
- Are standards applied consistently, regardless of who is involved?
- When people raise concerns, do they see something happen afterwards?
- Have you followed through on the commitments you’ve made?
- When was the last time you recognised someone for doing a great job?
None of these questions requires a large project or a new initiative, they simply ask us to look closely at the experience we’re creating for the people around us.
One final question is worth sitting with:
If one of your strongest people handed in their resignation tomorrow, what reason would they give? And, more importantly, would it come as a surprise?
The answer is often a good indication of what’s happening beneath the surface, long before anyone updates their LinkedIn profile.