Most people say they want to work remote—or at least hybrid—benefitting from the flexibility, choice and autonomy that come from having more control over where, when and how they work. But fascinating new research finds that while remote and hybrid work are part of an overall positive work climate, they aren’t everything. In fact, there are other factors that drive satisfaction and retention—and matter more.
Many companies are setting aside remote and hybrid working options. JP Morgan is the most recent example, just announcing that employees must be back five days a week beginning in March to support productivity and work processes. They join AT&T, Amazon and Walmart in making recent announcements to this effect.
But it’s not just about where and when people work—companies must consider their culture, practices and leadership to ensure they’re creating an organization where people want to work and want to make their best contribution.
It’s necessary to look more broadly than just at remote or hybrid work policies.
How to Drive Satisfaction and Retention
The prevalence of remote and hybrid work has been increasing for decades—and they’ve been especially available since the pandemic. Recently however, they are plateauing.
New ways of working are certainly here to stay, and the landscape of work will never be an all-day, five-days-a-week approach for all companies. Organizations will have to establish policies that are right for them, based on their business, their markets, their locations and their desired cultures.
While work continues to evolve, company approaches, practices and culture will count—for a lot—in terms of effectiveness, productivity, satisfaction and retention.
The study of 217,000 employees conducted by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that remote and hybrid work had some relationship with job satisfaction and people’s intentions to stay when it was viewed independent of other factors. But it had no statistical significance when the researchers accounted for other aspects of organizations’ practices and culture: elements like appreciation, communication, development, leadership and compensation.
1. Appreciation
The most important factor driving satisfaction and intention to stay was people feeling appreciated, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research study.
Another study reinforces the link with retention—with respondents who receive recognition being 45% less likely to leave the organization, according to Gallup and Workhuman.
Appreciation also matters to engagement, with those who receive some appreciation reporting they are almost three times as likely to be engaged as those who don’t. And those who receive more appreciation, who say they experience less loneliness and that their job gives them a sense of purpose in life, according to data from Gallup and Workhuman.
Unfortunately, many people don’t get the appreciation they crave—fully 55%, based on Gallup and Workhuman. Clearly, organizations have the opportunity to improve.
Importantly, there is a tie here to remote and hybrid work. Companies can express appreciation in lots of ways, and we may think of the traditional approaches such as bonuses or recognition programs. But another way to demonstrate appreciation is to give employees more choice and control over their work.
When people perform well, either individually or as teams, it follows that they would have more autonomy as it relates to when, where and how they’re working—and even on which projects they work—when it’s possible given the kind of work they do.
2. Communication
Another aspect that drives people’s satisfaction with their work and their intention to stay is communication—especially frequent two-way communication between employees and management—according to the National Bureau of Economic Research study.
People want to be informed, in the know and aware of what’s happening in the business. Letting people know what’s going on empowers them, so they can make good decisions. It also sends a message that you trust people with information, and that you respect them as grown ups who deserve to be in the information loop.
People don’t trust what they don’t understand, so organizations are wise to be transparent with their communication. Companies should also ensure they’re sharing communication with a regular cadence through multiple channels. They should also ensure communication is two-way, both seeking employee feedback and sharing the latest.
Organizations can also ensure communication is happening between the leader and individual team members, among team members and throughout the hierarchy—leveraging leadership forums, town halls, CEO addresses and the like.
Communication is closely related to remote or hybrid work. Companies can be terrifically successful with alternative ways of working, when they’re intentional about communication, ensuring that people who aren’t in the office are still engaged and regularly in touch with colleagues—and ensuring they have the right tools and collaboration technologies to support teamwork regardless of physical location.
3. Learning and Development
Another primary element driving satisfaction and intention to stay in the study by the National Bureau of Economic Research is learning and development.
This is consistent with significant amounts of data that growth is one of the primary desires from every generation, and especially Gen Z. We are all wired to want more, to learn and to develop. In fact, learning is correlated with joy and it is a sure path to happiness—so it makes sense that the opportunity to grow would be related to the desire to work for and with a company.
Companies can support learning in many ways. They can provide employees with formal development plans and visibility to how they can grow their career. In addition, organizations can provide formal learning opportunities as well as options to learn side-by-side with team members or via mentorship programs.
When companies offer remote and hybrid work, they should ensure they’re developing employees regardless of where and when they work—and they should provide team members with formal sessions to discuss how they’ll connect, communicate and collaborate at a distance. Organizations should also train leaders in how to manage for results and outcomes—not just presence.
4. Relationships with Leaders
Another primary way to boost satisfaction and intention to stay, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research study, is to ensure people have a constructive relationship with leaders.
Interestingly, leaders are still the number one reason people leave an organization—so when leaders build positive relationships with people, it makes a difference.
Having a great relationship, doesn’t mean making people happy every moment, but it does mean that people perceive their leader cares and has their best interests in mind.
Leaders can demonstrate empathy, ask questions, provide feedback and coaching and learn what’s important to employees—doing their best to align assignments with skills and passions. Leaders can build trust by acting with consistency in how they show up and in aligning their actions with their words.
With remote and hybrid work, leaders and employees must be intentional about connecting through regular one-on-one meetings and open discussions—so they can create proximity that is perceived, even if it isn’t based on a shared physical location.
5. Pay Transparency and Fairness
Another aspect of the research from the National Bureau of Economic Research is the importance of pay transparency and fairness.
One of our fundamental human needs is fairness, based on a brilliant study of 60 different societies. And this applies significantly to pay—because pay is a tangible way that companies value jobs and performance.
People want to know they are paid fairly in relationship to others, and in relationship to how they’re contributing. People want to know how their pay is calculated, how their performance is counted and how they can advance their compensation level.
Pay is closely related to remote and hybrid work as well. In some cases, the opportunity to work remote or hybrid is part of the employee value equation—in which a job may receive less wages because part of the compensation is the flexibility it offers. In addition, companies are wise to ensure they are doing their best to provide equitable opportunities for pay and promotion regardless of where people work.
Focus on Culture
People are motivated by multiple factors—and their satisfaction and desire to stay with an organization are certainly affected by opportunities for remote and hybrid work. But other elements also matter.
Great cultures offer strong vision, mission, direction and leadership as well as opportunities to participate meaningfully. The most successful cultures also offer clarity in terms of process and expectations balanced with adaptability, learning and flexibility.
No organization is perfect, of course, but when employers are intentional about understanding what matters most and take action to continuously improve and deliver great experiences to employees, they drive satisfaction and retention. And they create positive outcomes for people