Has COVID really demotivated our workforce?
Has COVID really demotivated our workforce?
Has COVID really demotivated our workforce?
I came across an interesting BBC article about 'quiet quitting' and the potential impact it's having on the UK economy.It got me thinking about motivation and the role we play as business leaders in getting the best out of our teams.
Research from the Resolution Foundation highlights a concerning shift in attitudes towards work. The proportion of employees willing to go the extra mile for their employer has fallen from 69% in 2015 to just 55% in 2025. Over the same period, overall job satisfaction has declined from 81% to 74%.
It's easy to say that people aren't as committed as they used to be, but I think we need to ask ourselves whether we're doing enough to motivate them in the first place.
People don't generally go the extra mile simply because they're told to! They need to feel that they're contributing to something worthwhile, that their efforts are recognised and that there's an opportunity for them to grow and develop. And I think that's where good leadership makes such a difference.
We need to understand what drives the individuals in our teams. For some, it's progression and responsibility. For others, it's recognition, flexibility or simply knowing that the work they're doing is genuinely valued. It's also about leading by example, communicating clearly, involving people in decisions and giving them the confidence and support to take ownership of their work.
Within agriculture, we spend a great deal of time discussing the challenges of attracting good people into our businesses. But attracting talent is only part of the challenge. If we want people to stay, perform and genuinely care about the success of the business, we have to give them a reason to. And that doesn't happen through salary alone. It comes from the culture we create and the leadership we provide every day.
Perhaps the question shouldn't be why employees are no longer willing to go the extra mile, but what we could be doing differently to motivate them to want to.
Original BBC article:https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cw23d5z87drpo
