‘Quiet firing’ – are you guilty of it? Could it be the cause of your recent resignations? The internet is currently awash with people talking about quiet quitting. This is when an employee literally does the bare minimum to get by without losing their job. It’s become a common issue of late, especially with companies embracing flexible working. But, it can actually go both ways.
What is ‘quiet firing’?
‘Quiet firing’ isn’t actually a new thing. It’s been happening for years. Going unreported and simply being part of the employment landscape. But now it has a name and people are starting to talk about it. Maybe it’s happened to you and you just didn’t realise? ‘Quiet firing’ is essentially when a manager demoralises their employees enough, that they choose to leave. Sometimes, it’s not intentional. And other times, it most certainly is.
When was the last time you took a step back and looked at your current management practices? If, like many other companies, you have gone from managing an on-site team, to managing a part or fully remote team, your management practice has had to change. Even if you haven’t made this transition, there are other issues afoot. With the cost of living incase and desire for career progression, employees are looking for more support than ever from their manager.
Are you guilty of ‘quiet firing’?
This can happen in various ways, such as increasing worlds to unmanageable levels, not responding to requests for promotions or salary increases, or by eliminating opportunities for career growth. But that’s not all. Micromanaging, excluding employees, cutting back hours, or removing soft benefits. All the things will make an employee feel unwanted, under-valued and neglected. And with so many vacancies in the market right now, candidates are in a strong position when it comes to finding a new job.
We encourage companies to look at their management practices and identify any instances of ‘quiet firing’ by poor managers. These are the managers who do not want to invest the time and effort to support, motivate and engage their teams. And sometimes this isn’t intentional. There are time pressures on managers across all areas of IT. It could be that the manager just simply doesn’t have the time to really consider the wellbeing of their team. These trends are causing concern for HR teams who are trying to recruit and retain talent in a tight job market.
Avoiding “quiet quitting’
Interestingly, there is a distinct connection between ‘quiet firing’ and ‘quiet quitting’. If there are members of your team who used to do well but are now showing signs of doing as little as possible, ask yourself this. Why? What is it that has made them feel so disengaged that they have lost to desire to do their very best? People don’t leave jobs that they feel supported in. Jobs that pay sensible salaries, a work-life balance and offer opportunities for career progression.
This year has seen a 24% increase in internet searches for “how to fire someone” compared to last year! And, as much as a 180% increase in the term “when to fire someone”. And with the current skills shortage, it’s surprising to see these increases.
Stop quiet firing, and you’ll avoid quiet quitting!
About Langley James
We have been helping companies to attract and retain the very best IT talent since 1999. But we don’t just simply find the best candidates. We can advise you on the current jobs market conditions. Share data on average IT salaries. Talk to you about the benefits that candidates are looking for. In fact, we do everything we can to help ensure that you get the very best people for your team. Get in touch with our team to find out how we can help you to recruit the best!
