Loyalty is associated with being “moral and honest,” particularly when it comes to family, friends, and romantic partners.
In the workplace, it is more complicated. It may be rational – I work here because they pay me a decent wage and the commute isn’t terrible; emotional – I believe my work is valued, my opinions are heard and I want to contribute to the future of this company; or more likely a little of both.
It’s true that staff loyal to their employer invest more time and effort in their work, which helps create an engaged, high-performing workplace. In turn, they receive promotions and salary increases. They have a greater sense of belonging and potentially a longer career in the same organisation.
Double-edged sword
Loyalty has benefits for employees and companies, but it can also prevent us from seeing and doing things that need to change. It is helpful to periodically step back and reflect on why we are loyal to specific people, things or ideas. This is particularly true for the younger generation, many of whom think differently about being attached to a company for decades.
The corporate bosses believe that new graduates are less “forced” than previous generations and are not as willing to tolerate what they perceive as abuse. They trust their bosses less and are not as patient when it comes to career advancement, and see little benefit in keeping their heads down and following orders if they don’t see results quickly. There are meaningful ways to inspire loyalty, such as recognising good work, empowering staff, eliminating toxicity and communicating better. This can go a long way in making employees feel appreciated and motivated. Still, tracking loyalty is complicated beyond looking at crude metrics such as employee turnover.
Career employees no longer dream of the day they retire with gold watches at the age of 60. Today’s employees consider themselves more like free agents in a sports franchise. The average tenure of workers between 20 and 35 years old is now below five years. It’s clear that employee loyalty has changed, which could be a direct correlation to the fact that technology has changed, education has changed, the nature of jobs has changed, access to new opportunities has changed, and the traditional career paths have changed. The list goes on.
Abandon the ship
There are several reasons why employees are switching companies faster than ever and why employee loyalty is declining. Understanding the workforce mindset is critical because employee engagement is about how people feel about their responsibilities, their environment, and their purpose.
Even a handful of actively disengaged employees can have a net negative effect on the workplace and lead to turnover or a toxic company culture. Maintaining employee engagement should be a top HR priority, especially as a company grows.
Most employees are motivated by money which can boost their purchasing power at an accelerated rate by simply changing companies rather than staying in the same position for an extended period – trying to do some compromise on their career advancement. However, the corporate ladder is no longer vertical, it is more of a zig-zag shape and it is a path in which high performers no longer have to accept being limited by glass ceilings.
Employees want opportunities to learn and grow, and we are not just talking about promotions. We are talking about companies that give people the option to expand their skill set and knowledge and take on new challenges that aren’t always within the scope of their job descriptions. Imagine doing the same task day after day with no room for skill development or any advancement. The job would be pretty boring, wouldn’t it? As humans, it is in our nature to learn, mature and advance as we age, and this applies to our careers as well.
With the click of a button, employees now have access to thousands of career opportunities. They are no longer confined by location, as the amount of remote work available continues to increase. High performers, especially in-demand jobs such as software engineering, literally have a carrot — shiny new opportunities — dangling in front of their faces every day. Companies that do not offer their employees the opportunity to advance will end up losing their high-performing employees.
Final thoughts
Think of your employees as fantastic Airbnb guests who you wish will continue to stay, but know will eventually leave and move on to their next adventure. Making the employee experience as positive and engaging as possible will help retain star players while also helping to attract new talent to replace those who end up leaving.
Implementing employee loyalty in your organisation is great. But tracking overall performance throughout this process will be crucial to understanding its long-term impacts. The study showed that loyal employees are selectively exploited by their managers; that those who agree to be exploited gain a stronger reputation for their loyalty, creating a “vicious cycle of suffering”; and that, perversely, disloyal workers are the ones who are rewarded.
