Five well-being fails enterprise leaders must fix to win the talent war

Amid the “global assault on everything we once knew as stable” HFS CEO Phil Fersht highlighted at the recent HFS Super Summit, enterprise employers must look beyond obvious financial inequalities and broaden their responsibilities to fix the destructive well-being inequalities driving employee disengagement and productivity issues.

Rampant inflation and pressure on currencies vs. the US dollar have exacerbated many of your employees’ financial challenges. We document this as a primarily wage-related challenge and offer solutions in the HFS POV, Don’t be fooled—address the low-wage emergency to fuel growth.

There’s more to happiness than a wage rise

Employers must consider the bigger mental health picture beyond wages, if they are to win the talent war. A recent Gallup study ‘The Global Rise of Unhappiness’ highlights five key characteristics that distinguish those who score themselves highest for well-being.

1. They are fulfilled by their work.
2. They have little financial stress.
3. They live in great communities.
4. They are in good physical shape.
5. They have loved ones they can turn to.

Enterprise employers must recognize they can and must have a role in all these factors because our data shows that 7/10 of global employees would leave for a new job should the right opportunity present itself in the next 12 months.

Exhibit 1: Employees feel under-challenged and are ready to jump ship, but they do see potential and are passionate about making a difference

Sample: N= 1,800 employees across leading IT/business service providers
Source: HFS Research 2022

Well-being fail 1: Many of your employees are not fulfilled by their work

Ensuring employees’ work is fulfilling is an obvious starting point for employers. Recent HFS Research finds enterprise employers misunderstand what their employees need. Exhibit 1 shows employees want more challenge and see roles in alternative companies as interchangeable; they are ready to switch from one to another for a 30% pay rise. These passionate people want to make a difference and see opportunities to make that difference in their work with clients. Employers aren’t tapping into that passion or meeting their need for a challenge.

Our research among 1,800 leading IT and business service providers’ employees found that GenZ (younger recruits aged 18–25) want to work for start-ups, while more experienced, high-skilled GenX employees (aged 50+) want to run their own businesses. Employers must take note and provide more of what start-up life and business ownership deliver, such as shared purpose, rewards, responsibility, and variety, or they risk losing vast swathes of their teams.

Well-being fail 2: Your lower-paid employees always faced financial stress, and now so does the “squeezed middle”

As MIT Sloan Business School professor Zeynep Tom puts it, it is unrealistic to expect employees to do a great job if their salaries are so low they worry about buying groceries or paying fuel bills. There is no doubt that low-paid workers feel the pinch, but as inflation bites, more employees are counting pennies. Daily money worries distract employees, who spend every spare moment looking for a better-paid job. We are amid a global labor shortage. Replacing employees won’t be cheap or easy. In May 2022, the UK reported fewer job seekers than vacancies for the first time since records began.

Reinvesting more profit in winning the talent battle makes financial sense when winning that talent battle will help you steal your market. Decent pay improves retention and revenue-driving customer experience. Harvard Business Review found businesses that invest in their employee experience delivered an improvement of up to 45% profit per person-hour.

Well-being fail 3: Zoom calls aren’t a community

Many organizations are witnessing a breakdown of the very fabric of a company—what it means to belong and spend most of your working week with your colleagues and customers. In a world of instability, isn’t this exactly when we should find some solace with our colleagues? Our bosses and colleagues are people with whom we can share our concerns and find some comfort in working together. The more we distance ourselves from our workplace, the more we cut off a valuable place that can help us all through these challenging times.

Employers have no choice but to re-engage their workforce by any means possible. Managers must set an example, going into the office at least twice a week and demanding their staff follow suit.

Well-being fail 4: Sitting comfortably is half the problem

Commuting, for all its ills, equated to an active life. The London Evening Standard reported three million London office workers clocked up the equivalent of a marathon every two weeks just getting to and from work.

Equivalent days at the home desk may sometimes be more productive, but they are taking their toll on your employees’ well-being. As a leader, you must have your employees’ best interests at heart, inspiring and rewarding a return to a more active life. Failing to do so is simply storing up physical and mental health challenges for your entire team, with all the productivity costs associated.

Well-being fail 5: Isolated employees may have no one to turn to

The happiest people have someone they can turn to when times are bleak. And let us reiterate: This turbulent world can appear very bleak. When down moments strike, employers must support those home alone or who simply don’t have the support networks of close social relationships. Managers, you must do more than dole out tasks and conduct awkward performance reviews. Get to know what makes your people tick. When people are happy, they feel trusted, value the people around them, and perform. In today’s work environment, you’ll lose your best people if you can’t bond with them. Not only will you likely fail to meet your goals, but your leadership will also notice that you’re struggling to drive your team.

The Bottom Line: With 7 out of 10 employees ready to quit, you have no choice but to fix your fails to win the talent war.

HFS data shows hiring and retaining quality staff are two of the top three internal challenges enterprises face, just as we also see 7 out of 10 employees ready to walk. Fixing your well-being fails is critical in becoming the kind of company people will choose to join and stay with. It is not all about the money, but it is about extending HR skills beyond the back office, nurturing employees as people, and prioritizing your relationship with your teams.

If managers are serious about being the talent winners worthy of stealing their markets, they must come out from behind their screens and rebuild the human connections too many have lost.