Authenticity is one in every of our core values at G2, so let’s lean into our genuine selves for a second and be trustworthy: 2023 is off to a tough begin for the tech business.

Information of layoffs from the most important names within the business doesn’t look like slowing down. For instance, 435 tech firms laid off about 121,000 employees in January and February. To place these numbers into perspective, the variety of individuals laid off thus far in 2023 is already greater than 75% of 2022’s whole.

If that wasn’t sufficient, then got here the collapse of Silicon Valley Financial institution in March, which was a brutal blow to our already reeling business. 

As Chief Individuals Officer of G2, I do my best to try to protect our staff from the chaos exterior of our firm’s figurative and literal partitions. However generally, these exterior forces develop into too highly effective. Regardless of a record-breaking 2021, G2 was unavoidably impacted by the financial ups and downs over the past yr, and we needed to rapidly shift from a quick development mode to a sensible development mode. We had been additionally not immune from the collapse and takeover of SVB financial institution, who we had labored with for a few years. 

Our focus and precedence all through the financial downturn was to maintain G2ers actively engaged. Regardless of the chaos exterior our firm partitions, we would like all staff to really feel that now we have their greatest pursuits at coronary heart, really feel valued, and really feel that they’re half of a bigger neighborhood. Our perception is that if we keep lively engagement, we’re higher geared up to experience out the storm by retaining prime expertise, inspiring stronger efficiency, and setting us up for development when financial circumstances get higher.

In different phrases: if we do what is true for our staff now, we are able to step on the gasoline pedal and actually speed up when the time comes. 

This tough patch isn’t new for our business – the notorious dot-com bust within the late 90s and the 2008 Nice Recession – it looks like each 15 years or so, now we have to pivot from a fast development mindset, hunker down, and dig deep into our resilience. In February, we held our annual international group kickoff occasion, and our theme was, you guessed it: Resilience. 

However what does resilience really imply at a company-wide stage? What does it imply at a person worker stage? Resilience, on the whole, is the capability to resist or get well difficulties – toughness, if you’ll. However at an organizational stage, resilience requires prioritization and making tough selections about what’s essential and what’s much less essential throughout robust instances. 

After layoffs, surviving staff usually see a decline in efficiency and really feel much less engaged at work. The truth is, layoffs can also result in extra turnover, usually the highest performers who really feel like they’re on a sinking ship. One examine discovered {that a} layoff affecting 1% of the workforce led to a 31% enhance within the voluntary turnover price. 

Why does this occur? As a result of layoffs break belief. It breaks the fundamental worker worth proposition between the corporate and the worker that they are going to be rewarded in the event that they carry out nicely. As soon as belief is damaged, it’s robust to get again, particularly in a sturdy job market when staff have choices. That’s why wide-scale layoffs are a final resort choice when all different choices have been exhausted.

One other development on this financial setting is finances cuts to advantages, perks, and cultural packages. In a latest interview, the president and CEO of SHRM, Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., shared that relating to chopping prices, employers search for bills which might be completely controllable and managed by the employer; advantages and perks fall below this umbrella. He additionally shared extra frankly that because the labor market has develop into much less aggressive, employers merely really feel that they not have to supply aggressive advantages. 

In keeping with a latest Fortune report, along with layoffs, employers are chopping the beneficiant advantages and perks that the tech business has develop into well-known for, akin to sabbaticals, wellness advantages, and paid day without work.

Not surprisingly, DEI additionally tends to be first on the chopping block. Glassdoor analysis this previous November indicated that company funding in numerous hiring, pay fairness, and worker useful resource teams fell in 2022, and a Monster.com report discovered that 10% of respondents stated variety initiatives are among the many “first to go” in bearish financial markets. 

These advantages and perks are lower as a result of firms view them as low-hanging fruit and straightforward cost-saving measures. Nonetheless, as Chief Individuals Officer, my quick thought goes to the long-term influence that this has on worker sentiment.

What message is being despatched to staff when these cuts are made, and what’s the ripple impact on worker engagement?

Earlier than we dive deeper, let’s take a second to outline what worker engagement is. Worker engagement is concerning the feelings and emotions of staff, so the definition can differ a bit relying on who you ask. Nonetheless, right here at G2, we outline worker engagement because the energy of the connection staff really feel with us.

Thus far, our focus and continued funding in our individuals to maintain them actively engaged has made a distinction and had a measurable influence. Regardless of all the things happening within the tech business, we didn’t simply keep our stage of engagement – we’ve really seen our engagement metrics enhance. This previous yr, we recorded our highest eNPS (58) and iNPS scores (71) in firm historical past.

As soon as once more, I’ll lean into authenticity right here and be trustworthy with you: I used to be not anticipating this. Did I believe we might keep our engagement scores in a difficult financial local weather? With some laborious work and energy, sure. However to hit file ranges? That was an surprising and, after all, a pleasing shock.

However extra importantly, I imagine it reveals that staff discover and acknowledge when their employers put their individuals first. Listed here are a few of the investments and focus areas we made in our individuals prior to now yr.

Genuine and clear communication

I’ve already talked about authenticity rather a lot, however I can’t overstate the significance of this worth throughout robust financial instances. Job stability, cash, and livelihoods are all prime of thoughts proper now.

Individuals are scared and nervous, so the suitable stage of honesty, sensitivity, and compassion is important for all communications. It supplies readability and reduces possibilities of misunderstanding (and threat), however most importantly–it’s the sort and respectful factor to do.

To present you a latest real-life instance, our group had to enter disaster communications mode because of the SVB collapse. We confronted the opportunity of our payroll being impacted, however there was a lot unknown on the time, and the state of affairs was altering by the hour. Staying true to our values and management ideas, we acknowledged the human and pure influence of delayed payroll, opened a communication channel for many who might face hardships, and dedicated to frequent updates.

In the end, we acquired overwhelmingly optimistic suggestions, and staff expressed their gratitude for the timeliness and transparency. However the actual significance of an occasion like that is that staff now see that even throughout a disaster, they will belief us. 

Well being and wellness advantages

Whereas some firms have needed to lower their well being and wellness advantages, we determined to develop them. In July 2022, we launched our World Worker Wellness Program (you may learn all about our program right here) and improved a few of our healthcare distributors based mostly on worker suggestions.

We additionally stay dedicated to offering strong PTO globally with further days off round essential holidays, added wellness depart for our APAC group, and Focus Fridays each week, our international observe of no conferences after 2:00 p.m. This determination to develop and never lower these advantages, maybe counterintuitive to some, is rooted in our management precept of Main Consciously. 

A part of Aware Management is the idea and observe of “dash and get well,” which is about balancing laborious work and super effort with relaxation. We acknowledge that this can be a worrying time, and our staff are sprinting more durable than earlier than and are extra targeted than ever to assist G2 experience out the storm. In consequence, it’s G2’s accountability to assist and encourage our staff to get well and relaxation. If we don’t worth restoration as a lot as sprinting, we threat burnout and turnover. 

The G2 neighborhood and DEI

Each quarter, as a part of our engagement survey, we ask G2ers what they love most about working right here. Far and away, the highest response is at all times our individuals and our tradition. It fuels our teamwork, camaraderie, and motivation to develop and develop. In my view, individuals and tradition are pivotal to enterprise efficiency, so as an alternative of shying away from them for budgetary causes, we doubled down.

This previous summer time, we elevated our funding in DEI and launched our World Mentorship Program to attach girls and BIPOC staff with leaders, accomplished a pay fairness audit, and have simply expanded our Worker Useful resource Group (ERG) community with our ninth ERG, Divergent Skills & Allies. This ERG goals to create a secure neighborhood, promote acceptance and celebration, and acknowledge and have a good time the distinctive strengths of our teammates with completely different and numerous talents. 

Profession leveling framework and pay fairness

Associated to DEI is the rollout of our international profession leveling framework, which we started in the course of the downturn and can full this summer time. It is a important funding in our individuals to offer readability and construct fairness in profession paths, development alternatives, and compensation. This will probably be one of the vital and transformative individuals packages to be rolled out at G2, and we’re excited concerning the influence this may have on our staff. 

In-person gatherings

It’s no secret that in-person gatherings are costly. However right here at G2, we see it as an funding in our staff to attach with their teammates, meet with leaders, and construct our technique collectively. We’re proud to be a versatile employer with hybrid and distant working choices (in truth, we had been simply named one of many nation’s greatest hybrid employers).

Nonetheless, our staff additionally inform us that they worth the power to assemble and are available collectively all year long. We proceed to carry our annual fiscal yr Kickoffs and Mid-Yr MeetUps as a result of it helps our staff really feel related to one another and the corporate, which is the very definition of worker engagement.