Recent workforce studies across Asia, Europe, and the United States have shown a significant shift in employee attitudes toward work, which has undoubtedly been exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic and the crisis it has caused around the world.

And "the Great Resignation" is a term born in the United States, and is used to express this new dynamic, after all, according to CNN, 47.4 million employees voluntarily left their job last year. An astonishing number by all accounts.

According to a recent report by the US Department of Labor, nearly 4.3 million people quit their jobs last January alone, which constitutes about 3% of the total workforce in the United States, and during the past year, more than 3.98 million quit. Workers an average of their jobs each month.

The technology sector is suffering the most

The technology sector has begun to suffer the most from this phenomenon, not only in America but throughout the world, and it is certainly one of the most challenges affecting the technology industry at the present time, and there are many experts and observers who believe that these are only the beginnings, as about 75% of technology workers have actually changed jobs just last year.

There are several factors behind the "big resignation", including an increase in employees' demand for shorter working hours, more flexibility at work, and a widespread feeling among these employees of fatigue and exhaustion after two years of hard work, as Forbes reported in a report. A few days ago.

It is clear that the Corona pandemic and its repercussions were a bitter experience that changed the lives of many people in all walks of life.

However, the imposed shift to a more flexible business model and adjustment of personnel priorities has awakened a new attitude and awareness in the workforce, and aroused caution among many employers.

Technology companies are forced to introduce new business models that satisfy employees (Shutterstock)

Change the rules of the game

But what should tech companies do to keep their employees first and attract new talent second, to meet the challenge of this major wave of resignations?

Steve Ringer, managing editor of ZDNet, tried to answer this question in an article published by the network recently.

The writer stresses that employers and companies in general, and those working in the technology sector in particular, must remember that the rules of the game have changed. The events that occurred in the past two years forced large, medium and small enterprises alike to put digital transformation at the heart of their strategies. The mechanisms for hiring technology staff have changed forever.

The author reviews some important data that must be taken into account in this context, the most important of which are:

Two-thirds of tech workers are either already looking for new jobs or are open to moving to other companies.

3-quarters of tech workers who actually changed jobs last year got at least two more job offers from competitors.

There are already 2.5 million cybersecurity jobs open worldwide, and it would take the residents of an entire city the size of Chicago to fill them.

The big question now - as the writer stresses - is how company owners and managers respond to these changes, as technical staff in particular have much greater negotiating capabilities than previously, something that may encourage (or force) some companies to change their policies to attract and retain the best talent their.

This means an increased focus on employee well-being and empowering them about how, when and where they work.

During the past year 2021, an average of 3.98 million workers quit their jobs each month (Shutterstock)

A new human-centered business model

Some observers and analysts have described this as the emergence of a “human-centered business model,” which may make us wonder about the core of the previous business model: Was it only profits that mattered to them, regardless of the needs and comfort of employees and their workers?

These conditions and changes in work will require technology companies to introduce new work models that satisfy employees, such as working for 4 days a week, or working remotely, but this may contradict an urgent necessity that many companies see as an imperative: returning to the office, As Ringer says in his article.

And if the tension between these two demands is poorly managed, it can easily give employees—and especially those technical staff with plenty of options—another opportunity to get involved in the major resignations movement that plagues all managers and chiefs in the sector.

The writer criticizes some managers and employers who are so eager to get their workers and employees back into the office full-time, because they think it's the most efficient way to get things done, which is understandable, but this approach likely won't work for everyone.

It will be interesting to see how this strategy is implemented, and we have to remember here that exhausted tech employees after two years of hard and exhausting work will not be happy to return to work from the office, not for nothing but just to please the bosses and owners of companies who want to get the most out of their real estate Expensive.

lessons and through

Ringer notes that some other companies are taking a more nuanced and transparent approach, allowing employees to return to the office at a slower pace, and wiser managers acknowledge that the past two years have shown us many lessons. In the office, working remotely via the Internet can make employees and companies more productive and happier.

Remember that there is a huge and growing demand for technology workers today, so hiring managers must think more seriously about the needs of those employees they want to work in their organizations, work on their comfort and achieve their aspirations as much as possible.

Smart bosses will think of all their employees the same way, especially if they want to keep their best employees. Those bosses who insist on a strict return to the office show no understanding of how the world is changing around them, and they will soon regret it.