As the world continues its return, many organizations could be in for a surprise.
Millions of workers could soon leave their roles as part of “The Great Resignation.” Their reasons vary, and estimates indicate one-quarter to 40% of workers across seemingly every industry could shortly walk away from their roles.
Such a worker exodus will have significant implications for hiring managers and staffing departments. But employee turnover also has severe consequences for organizational security if companies do not prepare.
How should organizations begin?
To start, organizations must evaluate their current security protocols. When entire teams reported to the office for work, an employee departure set in motion a formal process that included returning company property.
Many companies have relaxed their processes regarding departing team members, with workers reporting for duty from remote locations. It is illogical, and organizations cannot afford such an indifferent approach to something meaningful.
These businesses do not have a problem with their policies; they have an operations problem. Step one is to implement the correct policies and follow them. Once employees have left, they are less likely to return whatever proprietary information or devices they took with them.
The best solution has nothing to do with security.
Eliminating the security implications of “The Great Resignation” requires fixing the root cause. Organizations must make their people feel valued, so they are less likely to leave.
It may be impossible to eliminate all resignations, but organizations shouldn’t start posting job openings, resigning themselves to the fact that some employees will leave.
Finding success moving forward requires new thinking to tackle existing problems. Companies and their leadership teams must no longer accept the belief there is little to nothing they can do to institute widespread change.
Even acknowledging it will be impossible to keep some employees from leaving, the leaders who are adaptable and understand what their individual team members want to achieve will be in a better position to retain them and weather “The Great Resignation.”
The last year and a half will not be the last trial we encounter. Enduring the next one will be more manageable with the right team. Why not start that process today?
