3 Takeaways from our Global Workforce of the Future webinar

This October, four experts from leading global companies came together to discuss the latest research from the Adecco Group – Global Workforce of the Future: Unraveling the Talent Conundrum. The group’s conversation covered today’s biggest workforce challenges and how to adapt to changing worker attitudes. Read more about three key takeaways from their hour-long talk.

Combat “Quitfluencers” with a personalized approach

One of the buzziest findings from Adecco's new research is the impact of #Quitfluencers, or workers whose resignations spark a quitting spree. Those quitting sprees trigger 70% of co-workers to consider quitting themselves. Plus, 50% of workers who have seen others quit have acted and decided to quit in the next 12 months.

One way to address turnover? Panelists suggested going beyond predetermined career pathing and encourage workers to grow based on their own career goals. Or, focus more on training workers for the skills they’ll need a few years down the road – which will help employers stay ahead of the skills gap and allow workers to stay relevant in their field.

At the Ingka Group, Neena Potenza, Global Strategic Initiatives Manager, says they’ve combatted turnover in American IKEAs by making changes right away – and not waiting until the end of the year.  

“What we’re also trying to do is find more sustainable ways of measuring and looking into this [turnover],” Potenza said. “We started working on something called co-worker journeys and the methodology around that. If we take the journey of onboarding for example: What are the moments that matter in that onboarding journey? What is then not working well? And how can we tackle that almost immediately?”

Employers are struggling to decide what flexibility means

One of the key retention levers identified in the Adecco Group’s report is flexibility. From last year, the percentage of workers who are moving or are considering moving to a job with more flexibility around working hours and schedules has doubled. The same goes for working reduced hours.

However, each of the panelists had different takes on what flexibility can look like. Frontline workers don’t usually have the option of being remote, so they’re looking for autonomy and shift flexibility. For the minority of workers who do have the ability to be fully remote, there still remains the challenge of missing out on collaboration and peer-to-peer learning.

“I think we’re in the middle of this. It’s slowly moving,” said Krishnamurthy Shankar, Executive Vice President Group Head, at Infosys.

“I think people are also changing. A few months back, they said we’ll never come back, but now some are keen to come back – so I think people are also evolving. It’s something we are watching, and we will work to understand the pulse.”

Talk (and keep talking) about worker well-being

What does work/life balance mean for today’s workers? Is concern about workers' mental health growing? Or do workers just feel more comfortable talking about it? Mental health was the third topic covered by the panel, and much like the previous two, it comes down to listening to workers.

In fact, 49% of the workers say they’re worried about burnout, according to the Adecco Group research. It’s the first time Adecco experts have seen the number so high.

“Very often it starts with the basics. It starts with a culture of being able to speak up: What’s okay for you? What’s not okay for you?” said Christine Graeff, Global Head of People, at Credit Suisse. “And being available, having hotlines available for employees to be able to open up."

“You can do a lot of small nudges to help workers,” Graeff added, for example ensuring workers take paid holiday and vacation time, respecting their time outside of work, and modeling those values from a leadership level.

To learn more about the data, download the Global Workforce of the Future report.