Today’s employee is not the same as the one who joined the workforce couple of years ago. People who diligently worked predictable hours from designated office buildings are now willing to quit their jobs if it does not meet their need for flexibility leading to the great resignations of 2021.

Many have moved on to become freelancers and gig workers resulting in a workforce that is a heterogeneous mix of employees, contractors, partners, vendors, and fixed-term hires making it an interdependent workforce ecosystem. The recalibration of employee priorities has created a sense of urgency in employers to create policies and programmes for better employee engagement and retention.

Organisations only need to look at the following hard data points to appreciate the need of the hour. A Deloitte study revealed that attrition rose to 19.7 per cent in 2021, the highest in two decades. Poly Research found that among surveyed companies, 22 per cent of employees who quit over the last six months, wanted more flexibility. Poly Research also found nearly three-quarters of Indian employers believe that hybrid working is the future. By 2025, the workforce will be dispersed, digitally enabled, and liquid in nature, predicts a We Forum study.

Reasons for quitting

Employees are willing to quit for reasons ranging from lack of choices at work, relatability between purpose and career pathways, and work-life balance. Work can happen from any place; the modern workplace must provide social capital

The pandemic caused a dramatic shift in establishing digital trust and making it possible for hybrid work to become mainstream as homes became enabled with sophisticated infrastructure. It proved that work can be performed just as effectively in a remote set-up, and not all job roles require going to the fixed office places.

Once perceived as a professional, formal environment, the office is now being evaluated based on its social quotient or opportunities to network. Seventy-five per cent of employees want to be in office at least once a week, according to a JLL survey (September 2021). In essence, the workplace is now being seen as a place to connect with colleagues while work itself can be executed from anywhere.

While enabling efficiency and collaboration continue to be important for employers in this shifting landscape, facilitating deeper engagement with enhanced experience is crucial. The work culture must be driven by a unified sense of purpose that promotes collaboration, belongingness, and resilience.

New-age workplaces must be designed to be inclusive and cater to a heterogeneous workforce working from any time/anywhere. For example, a fresh-out-of-college recruit may feel at home working in a coffee shop whereas the more experienced may prefer the quietness of a formal office. Both their needs must be catered to and, therefore, the operating model cannot simply rely on a universal approach.

Training and acclimatisation of employees to ensure the best use of emerging technologies such as AI/ML and IoT can help transition to the new normal.

Processes and governing technologies must evolve, and changes communicated in a customised, transparent manner. For instance, how do organisations define and manage productivity when employees are juggling household responsibilities while working from home? How do you measure the productivity of the team and individuals in a hybrid working model? A solid governance structure becomes a mandate.

Each industry is responding differently to the post-pandemic new normal. The retail segment, for example, has gone from being primarily ‘brick and mortar’ or ‘purely online’ to embracing ‘click and mortar’ models, after recognising the need to engage its consumers on online and offline channels. Last-mile delivery has evolved as a separate category.

As India progresses to becoming a $5-trillion economy over the next decade, the thrust on the digital economy is setting the pace of growth. It can be accelerated when businesses find ways to leverage a workforce that has reset their expectations and needs.

Return to work frameworks must be designed to meet the unique needs of different demographics, industry segments, and job roles, from a process, technology, and policy point of view.

The author is Vice President, Global Practice Head for Microsoft Business Applications & Digital Workplace Services, Infosys

comment COMMENT NOW