”In the first year of the pandemic, there were a lot of talks, a lot of writing in the public space about how stressed people were, how hard it was to adjust to working from home (where possible), how little some managers understood what remote management meant, how much frustration there was on both the management side and the teams’ side, how people would leave when they had some clarity about the pandemic.

That we are now experiencing many quitting from companies is not exactly a big surprise, if we are honest. Conceptually, we all agreed that we would face such a situation. But we all hoped it wouldn’t happen to us. We did intellectual exercises about the imminence of the wave of people moving, of premutations, but our hope, our expectations remained misaligned with those ideational tribulations. Our de-ideal thinking clouded our critical thinking.


A study published by LinkedIn Talent Solutions shows that globally, 41% of employees will tend to look for another job in the next year. What are employees looking for most? Work-life balance. I would nuance and say they want time for other types of activities beyond work. Also, employees will be three times more satisfied at work if they feel that their manager, the ‘company’ is looking after them.

Here are some reasons why people leave:

  • Because of the way they were treated in the first year of the pandemic.
  • Some were treated unfairly, there are situations where companies took advantage of the pandemic situation and lowered salaries, cut benefits, reduced the number of employees. This has led to a devaluation of the relationship between employee and employer. The phenomenon has been forcible and one-sided.
  • Of course, there have also been situations where firms have been forced to take such measures to survive in the market. When the situation was communicated transparently, I think most people understood. But when these measures were taken and the company experienced high financial growth, there was a reaction to the perceived unfair treatment, to the perceived abusive measures.
    There is also the phenomenon of headhunting. People are easily displaced from a firm, generally because they are treated badly. We all know of examples of toxic managers who do not know how to value their employees. Obviously, in such situations, people don’t think twice about getting other offers. I know people who have left for less money just to get away from the toxic environment.
  • But there are also people who have been treated fairly but still leave to somewhere they get more. People don’t have the honesty to go to the manager and say they have another offer. There are people who treat a job as a dirty shirt, they leave without any consideration for the organisation where they were treated well, for the manager who cared and invested in them.

Our expectations


We often have, in our minds, the need to find the perfect job. We are unhappy that we haven’t found the perfect role, the perfect organisation, the perfect manager. Many inspirational quotes urge us to look for that job that perfectly overlaps with our passions, who we are, what we want. May I say that we are in a ‘wishful thinking’ mindset that only leads us to unhappiness?

In the expectation of perfection, I would suggest we do our best for a good enough organisation, a good enough manager, a good enough role. Reframing expectations help us to objectify ourselves, to understand, to accept that we and the manager have common goals in the organisation, that we are there to do something together. Of course, we need to be paid fairly for what we do and treated fairly. But often we make promises and expect the other person to keep them. Each party has the same expectations, but they don’t always live up to theirs.

We also get angry that others don’t understand us, that others don’t communicate well, thinking that we ourselves are a basket of flowers. But I have news that shakes us: we are not an open book either, we don’t say what we want, what we like or don’t like, we don’t have the honesty and openness to relate with integrity to our manager. I exaggerate, there are exceptions, but many cases fit this scenario. We wear various masks but complain that we are not appreciated for who and what we are. Hmmm, a bit hard, isn’t it?

Industries people leave


Probably IT, medical, are the most mobile fields. The reasons would be different. The opportunities in IT are great, the possibility to work remotely for different countries is great.

But there are also areas where the stress level is very high, there are companies that have not done well at all, and people are afraid of the future, so they prefer to look for options.

The level of resilience is different from person to person, our ability to tolerate uncertainty differs.

Often people leave because they feel that the manager doesn’t care about them, the organisation treats its employees like objects. Wellbeing programmes, concern for flexibility of hours, investment in people’s development, respect for employees – these are just some of the things that, if left unchecked, can cause people to leave organisations.

What can we do?

Identify the causes of departures.

We can have conversations with those who leave, but not all are open. We will find out some of the reasons, but it might also be good to have a questionnaire to find out the level of employee satisfaction, regular discussions between each person in the team and the manager.

Let’s clarify who leaves, employees between what ages, from what industries, but also where the stress is highest.

We won’t be able to stop the departures. But at least we can make risk mitigation plans.

Let’s assess the size of the resignation problem and what the impact is. Each company can calculate its turnover rate.

The number of annual departures ÷ Average total number of employees = Turnover rate.

  • Then, it is important to assess the impact, the cost of these redundancies.

There are situations where the departure of a few people can be a point of rethinking tasks, renegotiating with those who remain, increasing responsibilities and salaries. In other cases, however, this is not possible and replacements need to be hired. But in any case, I strongly recommend that we also consider the morale of those remaining, their well-being.

Develop retention programmes – for example, if people are leaving because they don’t have visibility on promotion opportunities, on career plans, we need to rethink career planning and succession policy and communicate better and more.

Many studies show that people need development plans, training, coaching, then flexible working hours, and wellbeing and mental health programmes.

Beyond these, however, I would also advise employees to consider their departure decisions carefully. We are hyper-connected, it’s good to leave a good image behind.

Here are some points to think about:

  • Am I in the right organisation for me?
  • Am I in the right role for what I know I can do at this moment?
  • What career do I want in the future? How does my current role help me?
  • Am I supported to grow in my role in this company?

Here are some suggestions:


Talk to your manager. If you feel that they are not communicating with you enough, if you feel you are being unfairly treated, if the company policy is to return to the office but you prefer to work hybrid, have a discussion with your manager before making the decision to leave. Treat the relationship fairly, the way you like to be treated.

Your manager will be able to give references about you in the future, it’s important to have a fair relationship, give them enough time to find someone else in your place, avoid announcing that you are leaving overnight. The way you do things talks about you, treat each other seriously and respectfully, even if you announce you are leaving.

Be careful not to talk ’round corners’ with colleagues about the reasons for your departure, don’t blame your manager for your departure.

Help with the transition of your departure. Offer to stay a little longer to help with this transition.

Thank those who helped you in your role. It matters that others remember you as someone who appreciates what others do, respects them.

In conclusion, I would say that we reap what we sow, both employees and employers. If we sow wind, treat our employees as objects we can easily discard, we will reap windstorm. If we don’t care what we do, go to work so we have somewhere to come back from, we will reap the ‘rewards’ of our behaviour in times of hardship for the company.”

via: Revista Cariere