State of the Workforce Webinar: The Great Management Walkout

Introduction

• Presenter: Maggie Augustine with Magnet Culture
• Topic: State of the workforce, focusing on management burnout and strategies to address it.
• Participants: Hundreds of attendees
• Date: Current issues and predictions for the next two quarters

Key Issues Addressed

1. Managerial Burnout

   • Labor shortages causing exhaustion and overload.
   • Burnout is leading to managers looking for more manageable positions.

2. Workload Creep

   • Increased expectations without equivalent increases in resources or time.
   • Cited example: Room attendants in hotels expected to clean more rooms per shift than a decade ago.

3. Impact of the Pandemic

   • Organizations pushed to maximum capacity with no wiggle room for employee absences.
   • Higher workload expectations becoming the norm.

4. The Great Management Walkout

   • Predictions of significant managerial resignations in the next two quarters due to burnout and feeling overwhelmed.
   • Current hiring trends continue despite the economic outlook.

Managerial Challenges

1. Hiring Responsibilities

   • Managers spending increased time on recruitment, taking up to 40% of their time.

2. Compensation Issues

   • Staff dissatisfaction with compensation despite increased raises not meeting inflation.

3. Work-from-Home Challenges

   • Increased pushback and demands from staff for flexible working conditions.

4. Direct Workload

   • Managers filling in for missing staff, adding to their responsibilities.

5. Corporate Expectations

   • High pressure from corporate metrics and new initiatives despite the challenging work environment.

Strategies for Managers

1. Operationalize Turnover

   • Create templates and checklists for recruiting, onboarding, and communication to save time.
   • Detailed onboarding checklists for day one, week one, month one, and quarter one.

2. Communicate Expectations

   • Clearly articulate job expectations and performance standards.
   • Regular check-ins and feedback to ensure understanding and compliance.

Strategies for Executives

1. Workload and Job Description Review

   • Re-evaluate and prune job descriptions to ensure they are sustainable.
   • Consider additional support roles like assistant managers or more HR support.

2. Unified Leadership Approach

   • Ensure all senior leaders align on strategies to improve retention and workforce stability.
   • Conduct retreats and intensive meetings focused solely on retention and staffing.

Additional Resources

• Magnet Vault: Offers tools like turnover calculator, retention audit questions, and mini-books.
• Onboarding Templates: Currently under development.

Q&A Highlights

• Quiet Quitting: Communicate expectations and engage with staff regularly to prevent minimal engagement.
• Manager’s Role in Employee Happiness: Shift towards creating a positive work environment and culture.

Conclusion

• Urgent need to address managerial burnout to prevent the great management walkout.
• Encourage sharing this session and resources with leadership teams for better alignment and action.

Contact Information: Reach out to presenters via LinkedIn for further questions and support.