Gallup’s 2023 State of the Global Workplace is out, and here’s the breakdown of everything you need to know as a leader.

The main summary statement Gallup wants leaders to take away? To retain your employees, change the way your people are managed.

This advice is based on two data points.

• Nearly six in 10 employees are quietly quitting, but they are likely to become engaged with a few changes to their workplace. 
• Leaders who receive coaching see their team’s engagement improve between 8-18%.

This tells us that culture and leadership are the linchpins of employee engagement.

We’ll start with culture.

The Workplace Culture Employees Want

Employees who are quiet quitting cite “Engagement or Culture” as the top reason (41%) over Pay or Wellbeing.

People who are disengaged (77% of global employees), are looking for things like:

• More recognition for their work.
• More communication from the leaders.
• Clear goals and stronger guidance.
• More opportunities to utilize their personal strengths.
• And more respect overall.

Simply put, the culture that today’s employees want is a culture of strong, healthy leadership habits. 

The good news is, implementing those habits is easier than you think. The new book, Management is Dead shows you how. Download the first chapter for free here.

The Role of Stress in the Employee Experience

While it’s true that employers and managers aren’t solely responsible for eradicating employee stress, they certainly have an important role to play.

“Gallup analysis finds that when employees are engaged at work, they report significantly lower stress in their lives.” 

56% of actively disengaged employees experience a lot of stress day-to-day compared to 30% of engaged employees.

When your employees are stressed, they’re not performing at their best.

So what can we do as managers to help our employees’ stress levels?

Take another look at the list provided above of what employees are looking for. Here are a few practical steps you can take:

• Ask a care question in every 1:1 meeting. Something as simple as “how is your family” or “What’s something you’re proud of accomplishing this week,” opens the door for trust and communication.

• Make it a habit to discuss goal progress. Your employees want more clarity. This is a good thing. It shows they care about their success. Help them (and your organization) out by repeating goals and expectations every week. Ask how they’re progressing and if there are any roadblocks you can remove for them.

• Give recognition where it’s due. Simply saying “thanks” to your team for a job well done goes a long way. Make this a habit. Employee appreciation has a direct impact on employee engagement and retention.

• Ask for feedback. Not only does this offer your employees space to share their thoughts, but it also shows that you respect their opinions and are eager to grow yourself. Leading by example is the first step in creating a culture of feedback. 

Let’s talk employee retention.

Globally, 51% of employees expressed some level of intent to leave their job. 

Right now, there are more opportunities available to unhappy workers, encouraging employees to jump ship more quickly than the previous few years. 

But Gallup’s data tells us that “quiet quitting employees are your organization’s low-hanging fruit for productivity gains.”

Why?

Because it all boils down to the manager-to-employee relationship. This one factor is the game-changer than can turn disengaged employees into your most high-performing team members.

If you’re looking for practical ways to actually form the leadership habits that result in engaged employees and higher retention rates, we’re here to help

Our top resources were created with leaders like you in mind. Here are some of our customer’s favorites:

1. The One-To-One Meeting: A How-To Guide.
2. Not A Dirty Word: Taking Back the Meaning of Feedback
3. A New Manager's Guide to Leadership
4. Your Quick Guide to Navigating Difficult Conversations
5. How to Create a Personalized Development Plan for Every Employee

Leadr is a people platform that makes managers better leaders. Instead of chasing leadership trends, start building lasting, healthy leadership habits that will result in greater employee engagement and retention. Want to see a quick product overview of Leadr and learn if it’s a good fit for your team? Check it out here.