Are you an employer? A company owner? Run your own start-up? Or do you have a full-time job? Have a part-time side hustle? An independent consultancy? Behold! You are part of the trend that dictates the future of work. The post-COVID world is evolving from “The Great Resignation” to the “Quite Quitting” era and we are all trying to catch up. The global work culture, whether you like it r not, is changing. Are organizations and employees changing with it?
Brian Creely, a career coach and YouTuber with 119,000 subscribers, coined the term quite quitting in one of his TikTok posts in March 2022 and social media platforms joined the conversation. The trend had such an impact that “Quiet quitters” make up at least 50% of the U.S. workforce — probably more according to Gallup. But what is quite quitting and how is it different from work-life balance?
Driven by similar underlying factors as actual resignations,
quiet quitting refers to opting out of tasks beyond one’s assigned duties and/or
becoming less psychologically invested in work.
It’s important to note the difference between doing the bare minimum and having boundaries at work. It can easily be confused with slacking around or not being invested in their role. But quiet quitters continue to fulfill their primary responsibilities, they’re just less willing to engage in activities known as citizenship behaviors: no more staying late, showing up early, or attending non-mandatory meetings. One could extend the argument to opting out of social gatherings/activities beyond work hours. In simple words, you only invest your time and energies in strictly fulfilling just your work specific to your job description.
Typically, full-time employees are often expected to extend their working commitments to stay available for overtime or working weekends. Some corporations have special compensation programs in place to facilitate the extra hours. And that seems fair but is that enough?
The employee experience, a term introduced by McKinsey & Co, prioritizes employee satisfaction at the workplace. Employee experience considers what people value in the broadest sense, acknowledging how life stage, personal circumstances, and even personality type make different propositions attractive to different people.
Essentially, it means that people are not married to their work just for the sake of money anymore. They are looking for purpose, a sense of fulfillment, and better lifestyle balances. So, what are organizations around the world doing to complement that shift in the work culture?
Korn Ferry has identified 7 areas dominating the future of work trends in 2022 in an insightful article.
Reinvention:
Companies are changing their models to put employees and customers at the center of it all. While COVID forced us to go digital and provide online solutions, it is more intentional now. Remote and flexible hours jobs are becoming more frequent. Digital tools and solutions are being curated to improve the overall human experience.
Scarcity:
Be it budget cuts or change in work dynamics but companies are now more invested in employee retention at hands of talent shortage. It is also important to note that matching talent with the job requirement has become essential as it is not merely a number game anymore, people want to feel connected to their jobs. Hence organizations are looking for specific talent that fits the job description and investing in employee upskilling to keep them updated with the changing trends. There is also more focus on incentivizing employees to join the corporation which opens the door for inclusion.
Vitality:
Companies face the economic burden of sickness and stress, both in medical expenses and lost productivity. As employees have expectations for flexible working, better healthcare and to help them keep the personal energy they need to survive and thrive when times get tough.
Sustainability:
The time has come for a more people-focused approach to building a sustainable future. If you aren’t considering how your people are going to deliver your ESG (environment, social, governance) strategy, your efforts are bound to fall short.
Individuality:
It has become evident that most work cultures are leaving behind the “one solution fits all” approach to cater to personalized employee needs. By moving to a more individualized approach, organizations will be able to understand employees at a deeper level.
Inclusivity:
The term is more than just a buzzword now, inclusivity beyond gender and race has become vital in achieving success for organizations. This opens the door for collaboration across people of different ages, backgrounds and expertise.
Accountability:
With the focus more being on individuals now, accountability has become a direct concern. Leaders need to rethink what accountability means, as they adjust to new forms of remote and hybrid working and respond to the demands of leading more agile, fluid teams.
There are more and more studies every day to support the change in work culture now focused on human values. The employer-to-employee relationship is becoming more personalized with a clear change in bilateral expectations. Adding to these efforts, some countries have introduced a 4-day work week to provide a better work-life balance. There is also an increased demand for benefits like health insurance, maternity leave, mental health coverage, strict harassment accountability, and more.
These changes, however revolutionary, are not truly unique. It poses a sincere question of why we haven’t done this before? Or even now, why do we still cling to the old traditions for consuming work cultures? Did we need a global pandemic to offset the old traditions of work? I believe that we are headed in the right direction and with human values in focus, people are finally finding a better way to navigate their work experience.
