“Employees across America are feeling increasingly detached from their jobs,” according to Gallup.  

A recent article about the Great Detachment by Ben Wigert, Ph.d., and Corey Tatel, Ph.d., shares his conclusion based on Gallup research and field experience. What is the Great Detachment and how does it differ from the Great Resignation shift that occurred several years ago during the pandemic and in its wake? What can employers, leaders, and managers do to counter this trend? 

From Resignation to Detachment 

The Great Resignation signified a period when 48% of America’s dissatisfied workers were actively job searching, watching for opportunities, and/or quit their current role. This disruption led to a marked increase in unfilled positions across industries.  
 
In contrast, the contemporary state of the Great Detachment indicates that dissatisfied workers are still seeking job opportunities and feel increasingly dissatisfied with their current employer. Yet, they are not necessarily able to job hop to another employer in a cooling job market with the backdrop of high inflation as a contributing factor. They feel stuck and less willing to take risks in a tight job market.  
 
Employee turnover may have slowed, but productivity has dropped and pressure for future loss of talent builds once conditions change. Workers feel detached from their work, presenting both a downside for the employee and employer. As Gallup pointed out, “organizational change initiatives are likely to meet indifference or resistance.” 

How to mitigate the Great Detachment?  

Understanding its cause is the first step. Gallup identified five workplace changes that played a role in the shift of worker sentiment.  

1. Rapid organizational change – The pandemic and Great Resignation created unplanned disruption and prompted adaptation. High levels of turnover and hiring resulted in new hires in a different role or career. This disruption led to burnout from change. Employees who stayed put at a company encountered new co-workers or were expected to perform with less support and resources. Leaders, managers, and co-workers welcomed an influx of new talent that put stress on their roles.
2. Hybrid and remote work – This contributed to disruption of work practices, policies, and communication. This alternate way of working led to a sense of disconnection and distance from coworkers and the company mission or purpose.
3. Heightened consumer demands – During and post-pandemic, customer expectations and demands rose particularly for firms offering primarily digital products, services, and experiences. Workers felt stressed, attempting to maintain or do more with fewer resources and support.
4. Work-Life balance – New employees, whether transitioning between employers or younger generations entering the workforce, reset demands and expectations for what they sought from their career and employers. Values didn’t always align with traditional practices and employer-employee relationships. 
5. Performance management fluctuated – With the disruptions, organizations struggled to  on-board new hires, train, provide feedback, clarify expectations, build teams, and recognize achievements. Falling short contributed to employee dissatisfaction and detachment. 

How to reengage employees and rebuild from the Great Detachment period?

Gallup listed several practical solutions. For employers of all sizes, online courses and programs can help organizations and leaders devise a committed long-term approach to repair rifts from workplace disruption and worker detachment.  

Reset expectations and priorities – Workers must clearly understand what is expected of them and receive support in order for them to be accountable and achieve standards for success.  

Specifically, Gallup observed that expectations become clear to employees when they are: 

• Collaboratively set and prioritized with employees 

• Aligned with what the team aims to achieve 

• Regularly discussed 

• Considered alongside workload and wellbeing 

Organizations that face systemic challenges with workplace trust and worker detachment may benefit from Cory Scheer’s program, Building Organizational Trust and Strengthening Workplace Culture. 

A more tactical short-term approach is for managers, especially those new to the role, to strengthen their leadership skills of communication, motivation, and problem solving. This online fundamentals course may help. Building Teams That Work can also bolster your skill set to better manage employees and reset expectations. 

Connect Individual Contributions to Mission and Purpose – Realign employees’ work and purpose with the employer’s mission to improve performance. Make the outcome of work matter. Foster a sense of community and commitment rather than clocking into a job.  

Strengthening the Employer-Employee Bond – “The Great Detachment indicates that many employees are struggling to navigate new priorities and new ways of working. They are also questioning the meaning and purpose of their work, and have yet to be answered,” noted Gallup. 
 
The remedy to detachment is reconnection and reengagement. Leaders and managers may benefit from focused methods to improve their management of remote teams, if applicable.

Companies can also retain talent by developing new hires, less-experienced supervisors and leaders.

Led by facilitator and leadership expert Warren Wandling, Leadership With Purpose may help the career development of aspiring leaders in this regard.  

The upside of improving engagement among employees is clear, Gallup notes.  

• Improving clarity of expectations from today’s levels to best-practice levels can lead to a 9% increase in profitability and an 11% improvement in work quality. 

• Improving the connection between employees’ jobs and the mission or purpose of their organization can lead to a 32% reduction in turnover and a 15% improvement in productivity.