What Makes Good Employees Quit? Part 3

Recap

My last article addressed more important reasons why good employees take their talents elsewhere. Lack of appreciation and recognition, and no opportunities for growth or advancement. I stressed that these are fundamental desires for most employees, and especially the tidal wave of millennial employees. People want to know they have some kind of future within the organization. But, having a future means they feel appreciated for their time, talent and skills, and their valuable qualities are recognized. They also want to have opportunities for growth, additional training, advancement, greater responsibilities and more money. If one or more of these is sorely missing from the work culture, who can blame good people for leaving?

People Leave People, Not Organizations

This is a touch subject, but I feel compelled to be brutally honest, based not only on the literature on this topic, but my 30-year career in senior care. Oh yeah, I’ve seen and heard a lot within those three decades of work in nursing homes, assisted living communities, home health, hospice, psychiatry, and hospitals. It took me a while to learn this fact, but I hold it to be true. Employees leave whomever is right above their heads – administration, management, supervisors, and team leaders. Why would an employee leave a building or an abstract company that exists somewhere out there? Well, they don’t. They leave people.

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I cannot remember where or when I heard this statement, but it stuck with me for a reason. A leader in senior care once told me that they would rather have no management at all rather than having bad management. They would risk no supervisors over a bunch of supervisors who lacked compassion for their employees. Having no leader is better than employing a tyrant.

Employees leave the person right above them for many reasons, but it all boils down to frustration. The manager and employee don’t see eye-to-eye on work ethics, accountability, or philosophy. The employee lacks critical resources to complete a job and the manager blows it off. The leader offers no incentives, additional training, or opportunities for growth.

A good leader or manager is flexible and will adapt their leadership style to the group of employees they manage. They will remain highly engaged in their team and will provide challenges as well as opportunities for advancement. Smart leaders train their replacement. That’s another important thing I learned from all of my years in senior care. They are not afraid to download their knowledge and train their team to one day be able to step up and possibly take over. Weak leaders are afraid to do this. They keep information away from employees. They don’t share new ideas and take credit for everything that goes right and no credit for anything that fails. Who would want a boss like this? They are tiring and frustrating and are the reason most good employees find another job.

Stress, Poor Communication and Lack of Support

Three reasons why good people leave – stress, poor communication, and lack of support from management – may be more important than most people think. Any job comes with some level of stress. Some are less stressful than others. Some organizations develop a culture of open, honest and clear communication while others stifle it. Some leaders and managers thrive on being supportive to their team and others don’t offer much support at all. If you want to see a mass exodus of talented employees walk out the door, continue to do nothing about stress, poor communication and support from leadership.

These three things, in particular, resonate with almost every human being on the planet, whether they work or not. Most people are repelled by stress and desire open dialogue. They also want to feel like someone has their back. Even President Eisenhower once said that it’s a terrible feeling when you’re a leader and you look behind you and no one is there. Having no support can lead to more stress. It can also make employees feel helpless, alone, and afraid.

Bottom Line – What Makes Good Employees Quit

Although I could go on and on about this topic, I feel compelled to shut up. You get it. Good employees leave people, not the organization. They also leave when they are overwhelmed by stress and there is poor or no communication whatsoever. They also seek employment elsewhere when they feel they have no support from leadership. Let’s see – stress, zero communication, and no support. That’s an organization I would never want to work for, would you?

What Makes Good Employees Quit – Part 1
What Makes Good Employees Quit – Part 2