I’m sure by now you have all heard of the term “The Great Resignation.” You started hearing this term in 2021 when we saw a huge increase in people quitting their jobs. The U.S. Bureau of Labor has been reporting ever increasing numbers since the fall of 2021. Millions have been quitting their jobs, yet there are over 10 million jobs that need to be filled. The big question is why? There have been many theories as to why people are quitting. Some individuals think that people are still sitting at home living off pandemic stimulus checks. Others believe that low wages are making people quit. Some believe that people are quitting because of a toxic workplace or that there is a lack of work/life balance. I believe that to a certain extent all of these can be true in some form or fashion. My personal two cents are that the pandemic made people take a good hard look at their life and some of their priorities have changed. People have started to prioritize self, family and work/life balance or a positive work environment. Whatever the reason behind the mass exodus of the workforce we need to figure out a course correction. Companies and organizations are trying to figure it out by suggesting things like pay raises or working from home. Which those can help but we need to get to the root of the problem.
So, what is the root of the problem? Leadership! Or should I say the lack of leadership and more specifically emotionally intelligent leadership. When it comes to leadership and the difference between poor leadership, the type that people leave in mass exodus, and effective leadership, where people stay and thrive, there is a consistent term that comes up. That term is emotional intelligence. Back in the early 1990s emotional intelligence was being theorized and discussed in psychologist circles as a social behavior.[i] It was later defined as “the ability to identify, assess, and control one’s own emotions, the emotions of others, and that of groups.”[ii] Research has shown that effective leaders have a high level of emotional intelligence.[iii] It is necessary to develop the relationships needed to run a high functioning organization. Many researchers believe there is a clear link between emotional intelligence and leadership because leaders are able to “direct and energize people.”[iv] Some of the ways someone could identify a leader having emotional intelligence in the workplace is: “1) They have the talent to read the emotions of others. 2) They can adjust to different situations and build relationships with just about anyone. 3) They have the uncanny ability to spot and address the elephant in the room. 4) They do a good job of acknowledging other people’s feelings when communicating difficult news. 5) They have personal knowledge of people to better understand their perspectives and work well with them. 6) They can absorb the nontechnical, human side of meetings and become a student of people and their feelings.”[v] Emotional intelligence brings empathy as a leadership skill and can truly help an individual lead people.
Social Competence goes along with emotional intelligence and is essential for a leader to have. Social competence in a leader means that leader has an awareness of the human factor.[vi] They realize that the people they are entrusted to lead is their mission. They have the social skills to interact with them on a personal level. They win them over and then inspire and motivate them to accomplish the mission and be the best they can be.
Emotional intelligence goes hand in hand with social competence and can be described as the social behaviors that make the difference between a person that is put in charge of a group and a true transformational leader.
So, to stop “The Great Resignation” leadership needs to develop their emotional intelligence through empathy and increase their social competence by realizing that their job is to take care of their people. That would mean understanding and empathizing with their people and knowing the concerns they have for work/life balance, wages, the pandemic, etc. and addressing them. If you take care of your people, they will take care of the business. Sounds simple but can be challenging. I have created simple formula to get you started. It’s called SEE- Stop, Evaluate, Empathize. Check out my blog “Stop. Evaluate. Empathize.” to learn how to begin changing your organizations culture into a thriving one that makes people want to stay around.
[i] Saffa Shaaban, “The impact of emotional intelligence on effective leadership in the military production factories (MPF) in Egypt.” Journal of Business and Retail Management Research, July 2018, 230.
[ii] Ibid., 230.
[iii] Ibid., 232.
[iv] Ibid., 232.
[v] Lt Col Joe Doty & MSgt Jeff Fenlason, “Narcissism and Toxic Leaders.” Military Review, January 2013, 55.
[vi] Marta Gaj, “Selected leadership qualities.” Scientific Journal of the Military University of Land Forces, December 2018, 144.