Post-pandemic, relationships between employees and employers have transformed.
Employees have gotten a good taste of work-life balance, which has edited what they want in their careers. Businesses must meet these new cultural demands somewhere in the middle and create a working synergy focusing on healthy work-life balance. Ignoring this new trend will impact hiring and retaining the best talent.
Historically, business professionals have prioritized their careers above anything else. Coming out of the pandemic, they return to the office only to discover that there is more to life beyond the workplace. Their priorities have shifted to their families and overall happiness and they seek empathy and understanding about their personal boundaries.
While still performing tasks at hand, many professionals view their “job” as a means to a goal rather than the sole purpose of their existence. Remote capability is a top strategy for employers that support this new life discovery. Companies must demonstrate compassion for the people on their team, their families, and the wider community. Work-life and personal lives are intertwined.
Hiring managers need to adjust their old-school mentality around candidates who seek this work/life balance. Many hiring managers voice their opinions, calling prospective candidates weak, soft, or incapable of executing because of this firm boundary. But we’ve now seen that cultures can operate differently and be successful. We have witnessed a high level of execution coming from top performers who can handle the dance and put their families and health first.
This topic hits close to home. Naviga Recruiting & Executive Search decided to be fully remote 6 years ago, pre-pandemic. This decision feeds self-care as a priority. The team is encouraged to manage their time according to priorities in life; Family & health first, business second. Offering flexibility and remote working arrangements is the catalyst for a healthy balance.
An employer can tackle this mission by allowing a remote workforce, hybrid or 100% remote. It is no secret that the number one reason why employees are resigning from organizations or staying with organizations is due to their ability to work remotely.
Employers are in a dilemma. Organizations forcing employees to return to the same way of doing business as we did three years ago are out of touch. We have evolved into complex humans and business people. Employers must embrace this change, or their culture will die on the vine.