With remote working becoming an indispensable way of life for the majority, employees around the world were forced almost overnight to adapt and cope with the sudden intertwining of their professional and personal lives.

Amid the challenge of striking a new work-life balance, this unprecedented crisis has prompted many to rethink what is truly important in their lives. Coupled with the gradual reopening of economies and a recovering job market underway, more employees are proactively seeking out new opportunities for something that better complements their new lifestyle.

In the United States, a phenomenon termed as “The Great Resignation” has emerged – a record 4.3 million people quit their jobs in August, in search of something better as the threat of pandemic-related woes started to subside.

There are indications that this wave of resignations is creeping across countries worldwide. Globally, voluntary attrition started to steadily climb in April 2021 (increasing from 14 percent to 15 percent annual turnover globally) to a high of 17 percent in July 2021, according to a recent report by Workday Peakon Employee Voice.

Another McKinsey report revealed that four in 10 employees worldwide were at least somewhat likely to quit within the next three to six months. These findings are indicative of a larger global phenomenon that is likely to extend well into 2022, leaving some organizations scrambling to retain their best people.

Notably, underlying this challenge to retain and replace talent is a fundamental issue that organizations today need to address; that is, the critical need to build a resilient, adaptable and engaged workforce with the skills necessary in the changing world of work.

In fact, the World Economic Forum has estimated that 42 percent of jobs will require different skills in the next three years, and over 1 billion workers will need reskilling by 2030. Looking ahead, a skills-first and people-first strategy will be key in helping organizations tackle the war for talent.

Findings from the same Workday Peakon Employee Voice survey revealed that 27 percent of current employees have comparable scoring behaviors as those who have left their jobs over the past year. This highlights an alarming trend – over a quarter of current global employees across different industries are showing clear, measurable warning signs identified in people who have already quit, indicating that many may be harboring a pent-up desire to leave their jobs.

There is a myriad of reasons why employees are considering leaving their jobs today, but most point to the renewed focus on personal goals and development following their pandemic epiphany. It also stems from a growing realization among employees about their own limits of working and meeting the demands in a fast-changing world that they believe requires them to run even faster to keep up with the pace of change.

This in turn sparks the desire to look for companies that truly care and are focused on their employees’ well-being. Clearly, in a post-pandemic world, beyond job satisfaction, having a healthy work-life balance supported by empathetic leaders is highly desirable to employees.

With the rise of an always-on work culture that has had wide-reaching implications on the mental and emotional well-being of employees, how business leaders connect with their employees and cultivate a positive organizational culture will be key in getting them to stay.

Faced with this disconcerting phenomenon, how can organizations attract and retain talent in a fast-evolving world of work? Fortunately, there is a window of opportunity for companies to act now. To turn the tide, it is imperative that leaders really listen to their employees and understand what they want.

It is not an exaggeration to say that the workplace today looks very different than it did two years ago. During this time, companies worldwide have transformed their business operations and adapted in ways previously unimaginable. As we edge tentatively closer to a post-pandemic world, companies need to continue to adapt to meet these changing trends and employee expectations.

Against this backdrop, some key themes that have emerged in Workday Peakon Employee Voice’s latest “Employee Expectations Report” include a greater emphasis on diversity, equity and inclusion, health and well-being, as well as ongoing growth and development.

Moving forward, organizations need to ensure that they are investing in the right tools, talents, and processes to build a stronger, happier, and more resilient workforce, especially as the war for talent intensifies. 

With a nuanced understanding of the entire employee experience, coupled with an accurate way of detecting employee attrition signals, organizations can be better positioned to retain their best and brightest talent as they navigate the changing world of work.

In today’s digital era, technology undeniably plays a key role in helping business leaders understand how employee expectations are changing in real-time, as they strive to enhance the overall employee experience. Success today requires organizations to operate at a higher metabolic rate. With a strong technology backbone that enables them to get the most value out of their data, business leaders can make the right decisions faster and enable a human resource operating model and organizational culture that elevates human performance. Automation, machine-learning assisted decisions and engaging experiences can allow employees to realize their potential, while running at a fraction of the pace.

Markedly, the use of annual workplace pulse surveys and purely intuition-based actions are no longer sufficient to capture the full realities of today’s workforce. In a fast-paced digital world, having access to real-time data and insights has proven to be a game changer in employee empowerment and engagement. With data analytics, companies can harness the full power of data to uncover deeper, actionable truths, enabling a truly agile and resilient organizational culture.

To that end, a culture strongly rooted in technology will be a fundamental element in the high-metabolic, forward-looking organizations of tomorrow. In other words, digital is no longer an optional strategy to thrive in a fast-evolving business landscape; rather, it is an integral part of managing the post-pandemic workforce, allowing organizations to better empower employees so they can flourish in their roles.

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The writer is president of Asia at Workday. The views are personal.