It’s been more than half a year since I first heard about ” The Great Resignation ” in one of the videos by the fantastic Marc Vidal .
The Americans’ “Great Resignation,” which some have seen as a preview of what could happen in Europe, has turned out to be a “local” movement, reflected in each country depending on its starting point before and after the end of the hard part of the pandemic.
In the United States, the number of 50 million workers leaving in one year is equivalent to 33% of the working population, which in Spain would mean 6.4 million leaving; but here there have been no resignations, there have been hardly any resignations. And why? It’s quite clear: on the other side of the pond, it takes between 4 and 10 months to find a job, depending on the complexity of the position and its pay level, while in Spain the average time is over 11 months, and if you’re over 50, we find that the average time to find a new job is, according to the INE, 24 months.
So, for all the reasons one may have for jumping into the “void,” there are some voids that are more inhospitable than others, don’t you think?
On the other hand, the Spanish savings rate reached its peak during the pandemic at 24%, compared to that of Americans, which reached no less than 33%. And of course, a softer cushion always helps. It’s true that these macroeconomic data reflect the unequal figures between the so-called wealthy and those struggling to make ends meet.
In the end, and I will never tire of repeating this, the pyramid of needs that Maslow drew for us almost a century ago continues to reflect a powerful reality that forces us to give up Self-Actualization, Recognition, Affiliation, and even Security if physiological needs are not fully met.
In any case, whether or not there are resignations in the Spanish market for the reasons already explained, I dare to clarify the crux of the matter: there are many, too many, people who don’t enjoy their jobs, their work environment. Millions of people make a huge effort every morning because “THEY HAVE TO GO AND FULFILL THEIR OBLIGATIONS.”
Those who are already confident they can meet their basic needs with acceptable levels of security will not hesitate to consider alternatives, and will wake up every day with a “What if…” in their head, while they silently sip their first cup of coffee in the morning, while routinely brushing their teeth…
How many people wouldn’t give anything if, after a few years of working life, they felt “I WANT TO GO” instead of “I HAVE TO GO”?
Many people start their jobs out of necessity because they haven’t found anything else, but does their company take care of them so they eventually find the motivation they lack, so they fall in love with the brand for which they perform a key role in the value chain? And how many , starting motivated, excited, eager to take on the world, don’t end up disillusioned over time because no one took up their mantle, no one echoed their dreams?
What if we could help people discover their potential already establish their personal development paths?
There’s an index that measures social discontent, and Spain is at the bottom of the OECD list, surpassed only by Italy…
And what would happen if your greatest bulwarks, your champions, became demotivated without you realizing it? Could you afford for talent to drain away?
We at Plehnia are convinced we can help people be happier in their work environments . We’ve seen how cutting-edge talent management technology (Cornerstone OnDemand, for example) is helping company managers take better care of their teams by taking into account their abilities, their potential, their hopes, and their goals.
What if we could help people discover their potential with the help of Artificial Intelligence and establish their growth and personal development paths?
So, THE GREAT RESIGNATION means that things are happening that invite you to look around you and not just ahead, lest you be left alone.
The digitalization of processes that revitalize the Employee Journey begins with a first step: defining a strategic plan: YOU STILL HAVE TIME, but PLEASE, don’t waste another minute taking that first step.
Nacho Marín – CEO