Taking Advantage of the Great Resignation

The global health pandemic which suddenly showed up in our lives in the early 2020s has altered the world of work in more significant ways than one. Now we have become very familiar with workplace-related terms like work-from-home (WFH), virtual meetings, social distancing, remote workers, quarantine etc.

However, there is also a major workplace trend that emerged as a by-product of the COVID-19 pandemic and many organisations around the world, regardless of size,  industry or location, are still trying to cope with it - The Great Resignation also known as the Big Quit or the Great Reshuffle.

The Great Resignation is a worrying mass resignation of workers across various sectors of the economy and it started in late 2020 and early 2021 when many individuals and companies were yet to recover in the aftermath of the deadly COVID-19 virus.

The Great Resignation has already taken effect before the term was eventually coined by Anthony Klotz, a management professor at University College London's School of Management, in May 2021, when he predicted a sustained mass exit of staff from business organisations based in the western world.

Though we can safety conclude that the Great Resignation has a lot to do with the pandemic, there are other factors that can be said to be responsible including inflationary pressures, wage stagnation and the realisation that telecommuting (or what is often referred to as remote work) was a viable option.

The labour markets in developing countries like Nigeria, India and Brazil are not just experiencing the Great Resignation but are also battling with a sustained brain drain as more people migrate to the western world in search of better work opportunities. This trend will not likely subside any time soon and as a matter of fact, some European and American nations have designed economic policies to entice top quality manpower from developing nations.

The impact of the Great Resignation on the employers and the employed are still been felt by both parties but the focus of this article is the effects on the latter. Rather than focus on the problem, we will take a good look at the opportunities that this trend has thrown open in the last few years especially in the developing countries.

Firstly, many organisations are now experiencing a shortage of talented and skilled manpower especially in key economic sectors like telecommunications, healthcare, banking and education. You can therefore upgrade your level of expertise to take advantage of these job opportunities especially when they represent an upgrade on your current job.

Usually, corporate organisations may be able to cope with staff shortages especially when they have a relatively large workforce but this remedy can only suffice in the short term and that would most likely be in job positions that do not require sophisticated skills.

So you can readily position yourself to take on such roles from the inside as a current employee or from the outside as a new applicant. And this is the reason why you should never frown at opportunities for delegated tasks or secondment because they might be preparing you for future roles. You can only take advantage of opportunities that you have prepared for beforehand.

Secondly, quite a number of employees resigned because of their work conditions and other personnel-related practices including low wages. This could force employers of labour to improve the environment of work and scale up the wages in favour of the new and existing workers. By implication, the bargaining power may shift slightly in favour of employees.

It is true that many organisations are going through a rough patch right now due to rising inflation and the impending economic recession but they still need human resources at their disposal in order to achieve their corporate goals and they would compete amongst themselves to attract and retain top talents in their various sectors of the economy.

More employees may be asked to work from home on selected days of the week as a means of enhancing work-life balance and even remuneration may be upwardly reviewed for critical job positions as bargaining power in the labour market increasingly shifts to the employees. Many employers now seek to provide a flexible work arrangement as a way of enhancing work-life balance and also employee performance.

Thirdly, people are presented with a fantastic opportunity to re-think their careers and the true essence of their current jobs. An individual may then find a better way to execute his/her job, move to a more fulfilling career or even start a new self-owned business. This is probably why the Great Resignation is also referred to as the Great Reshuffle.

Quite a sizable number of employees who have resigned in the last two years have mentioned job dissatisfaction as a major factor in making their decisions to quit. Regardless of the fact that we live in a fast-paced world that is largely modulated by technology, people still have an intrinsic desire to live fulfilled lives and find meaning in their day-to-day jobs.

An ideal situation for an individual would be to work on a job that aligns with his/her purpose in life but where this is not feasible, then at the very least a job should provide an appreciable level of motivation and satisfaction. When this happens, both parties in the employment contract would then maximise gain.

You can exploit the advantages that the Great Resignation offers to your own advantage; there is always a hidden opportunity(ies) in every problem no matter how complex it may seem at the initial stage. The careers of some have been consumed by the Great Resignation while others have rode its stormy waves to take their careers to new heights.

Whereas some have made an unfortunate transition from the Great Resignation into the Great Regret where they are now finding it quite hard to excel in their new jobs or in any other of endeavour of theirs, you can choose to make the most of it by possessing and applying the right knowledge. This is why it would make a lot of sense to read up on what you can about the Great Resignation; attend a seminar or workshop if the opportunity comes up.

The Great Resignation will definitely leave its scars on all the parties involved in the employment relationship and even the society at large but some would emerge stronger and build outstanding careers, organisations and enterprises from the rubbles of the Big Quit. You can therefore choose to be exploit the chaos to your advantage or be lost in it. The choice is absolutely yours.