Change

Changing Landscape

Work monopolizes a significant portion of our daily lives. Employees don’t leave their values at the company door and pick them up after their shift or day. People are no longer accepting that type model as the standard work agreement. 

How work is conducted and expectations of workers evolves. Just because things were done one way yesterday, doesn’t mean it must be done the same way today. Over the years, companies and the workforce have developed a “transactional” relationship. Many companies adopted an, “employment is dependent on profit,” strategic model. Downsizing became an accepted and viable solution to maintaining profit margins. As a result, employee’s adopted a “this job will do until I find something better,” philosophy. The reality is, there is no expectation of loyalty on either side. It's a no-win solution. 

2020 Pandemic

Enter stage right, the 2020 pandemic. It was a game changer. Both employers and employees realized that business could successfully be conducted differently and as result, remote and hybrid work models have forced companies to rethink the work, their employees, their business needs and ultimately, how work gets done. 

The pandemic gave many a chance to think about their quality of life and how their work either supported or compromised their lives. Work life balance is no longer a “wish-list” item but a “must have” for many employees. The pandemic also showed us who the essential workers are, i.e. the employees that could not work from home. The ones that helped us to keep grocery stores open, utilities on, transportation flowing, trash collected, the myriad of people who have not always been treated respectfully or well-compensated. 

Social and Political Unrest

2020 also exposed the racial divide in the U.S. that prompted worldwide social unrest. The polarized U.S. political landscape adds yet another pressure for workers. But what does all this have to do with work? The workplace is where it all intersects.  

The Great Resignation and Quiet Quitting

There are many factors and much speculation about what attributed to the past two year’s great resignation. What we do know is that people are exploring their options for both work and life. That statistics show that there is a lot of room for improvement when it comes to employees work experience. 

Quiet quitting is the new disengagement buzz word, but there’s nothing new about that reality. The recent 2022, Gallup poll findings score U.S./Canadian employee engagement at 33 percent. That leaves plenty of room for employers to implement strategies to revolutionize work and employee experience.  

Workplace Well-being 

The pandemic exposed the importance of mental health support and community. Employees require more from their lives and their lives at work. Employees stress levels outside of work have reached an all-time high. Workplace stress only adds to the physical and emotional toll of today’s workers. In 2022, the  Surgeon General developed a framework for Workplace Mental Health and Well-Being.