KSS eKourier October 2022

FEATURE

THE GREAT RESIGNATION

"The Great Resignation", a phrase apparently coined by Organisational Psychologist Anthony Klotz during an interview with Bloomberg back in May 2021. Klotz suggested that the current trend of people leaving their place of work was in response to the Coronavirus pandemic. There maybe an argument to say it’s a response to how Governments have responded to the pandemic. Klotz also described the phenomenon as “The Great Reimagination”, “The Great Reset” and “The Great Realisation. Ultimately “Resignation” was chosen to dominate the headlines.

the question 'am I living by best life?'. So if pursuing your dreams and your passions means changing jobs this is a beautiful and positive reason. We as a business fully support anyone following a passion or moving on to something better and more appropriate for them. perfectly natural. There is no more room for that person to grow and develop and improve their financial position due to the size of the organi- sation. Long term employees feel they would like to test their skills elsewhere and avoid what I call the “curse of longevity” where people do something for so long, they forget to be grateful for what they have and take it for granted. The Great Resignation is the great opportunity for everyone, individuals and businesses alike. Everyone wins, individuals get the conditions they are looking for to live their best life and businesses employee new skills, new thinking and as in both situations a return to the honeymoon period, when everything is wonderful and rosy. Aside from the competition for talent there is a shortage of people. This is challenging for businesses in many industries and more difficult to resolve. Out of adversity is opportunity, the entrepreneurial spirit within business owners will prevail and the outcome will be innovation. It will be interesting to watch this develop over time. Yes, it might be because the individual is not quite happy in their current role,

I s it true? Speaking with other profes- sionals this is the single biggest challenge facing their businesses today. We as an organisation have also felt the effects of this phenom - enon. Team Members from all parts of the organisation, including the Chief Financial Officer have left our business. There is no doubt most of the world is experiencing a labour shortage, some countries worse than others. As a nation built on immigration, Australia has, I believe, been impacted particularly hard. Like other similar countries the pandemic saw an exit home for migrant workers prefer- ring to be home when borders were closed. Closed borders stopped incoming workers reducing the overall available workforce. In our own backyard there has been a shift to people moving away from major cities where the greatest employment is needed. People close to the end of their careers are deciding to leave the workforce early rather than deal with the complexities the pandemic created in workplaces.

Competition is high with job vacancies vastly outnumbering available candidates. McDonalds Chatswood recently advertised a $1,000 sign on bonus to attract workers. I believe there are other businesses doing similar incentives.

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THE GREAT RESIGNATION IS THE GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR EVERYONE, INDIVIDUALS, AND BUSINESSES ALIKE

Back to the Great Resignation, what is happening is positive in many ways. People are able to confidently move between organisations, even different roles that require skills outside of their current skill set for what they believe are better conditions more appropriate for where they are in their working lives. This in many ways is positive. Iis it happening because businesses are bad? I would challenge that statement as media negative bias. I do believe that people are taking stock of their lives and asking themselves ‘

Darren Marshall Chief Operating Officer

Businesses are in a tussle for talent.

12 Kennards Kourier Oct 2022