On the surface, that question may seem simple, but loyalty as a workplace issue is anything but. Loyalty drives opportunity, and lack of loyalty means lack of retention—and we all know the costs associated with shifting workforces.
by Site Staff
December 28, 2005
How loyal is your workforce?
On the surface, that question may seem simple, but loyalty as a workplace issue is anything but. Loyalty drives opportunity, and lack of loyalty means lack of retention—and we all know the costs associated with shifting workforces.
When speaking about loyalty, I’m not talking about whether or not workers are showing up and doing what’s minimally required. I’m talking about complete loyalty: full engagement in their position, a willingness to do what’s necessary, allegiance to the organization and its missions.
As any manager learns quickly, loyalty is an earned attribute, not an automatic benefit. Loyalty is no accident. Loyalty is a commodity like any other, needing careful management and wise investment.
How loyal is your workforce? You might be surprised.
I recently saw a white paper on the topic from Walker Information, “The 2005 Walker Loyalty Report for Loyalty in the Workplace.” Except for using the word “loyalty” twice in the title (that’s the editor in me talking), it was a fascinating read with some very interesting data.
According to the report, 34 percent of employees in an organization are truly loyal, which Walker defines as being committed to the organization and planning to stay for at least two years. (I remember when loyalty started with the second decade of work, but that’s a subject for another day.) The good news from the report is that the loyalty level is increasing, with that 34 percent up four percentage points from 2003 and up 10 percentage points from 2001.The bad news is that the next two categories studied—“high risk” and “trapped”—make up more than half of the workforce (31 percent and 28 percent, respectively). No matter how you slice it, more members of the workforce are less than fully engaged in the operation and success of their employers.
On the surface, that’s not just stunning, it’s sad. What’s more, it’s a call to arms. If you’re not increasing the level of loyalty through professional development, you’re just providing training for the good employee’s next boss.
The good news, the study shows you are helping. More than half of the survey’s 2,500 respondents, 55 percent, called workforce learning and development the key driver of employee loyalty. In fact, “care and concern for employees” ranked number one on a five-point list of factors impacting loyalty, with compensation not far behind. The study also showed that loyal employees are more likely to take part in education opportunities, mentoring programs and career planning.
There were other interesting, if unsurprising, tidbits in the study, such as the facts that loyalty increases with job longevity and executive ethics impact employee engagement. Loyalty also moves with you up the ladder: 86 percent of executives in the Walker study are considered truly loyal, compared to 28 percent of lower-ranked workers.
As with so many other things in the CLO’s world, crisis equals opportunity. In two years, when Walker surveys the subject again, the trend hopefully will have continued and workforce loyalty will have improved. If so, the CLO will be the unsung (except here) hero, having educated new generations in a work attitude that propels both the employee and employer forward.
It all comes down to this: Employees invest more of themselves in a company when the reverse also is true. I don’t believe it’s possible to be a chief learning officer and not instinctively appreciate that give-and-take attitude.
How loyal is your workforce? More importantly, what are you doing about it?
Norm Kamikow
Editor in Chief
norm@CLOmedia.com