Way to keep staff is to keep them happy
The skills shortage makes it vital that companies keep their talent attrition rate low and staff engagement level high. Australian businesses share their workplace happiness stories.
There are enough headwinds in the economy for businesses to worry about without throwing the raging skills shortage into the mix: rising prices, energy transition, housing shortage, the need to keep innovation going.
Skills shortage – the difficulty of finding the right candidates with the right skills for the right pay that businesses can afford while maintaining their profitability – has firmed up as a major aspect of the productivity quest for employers this year.
The post-pandemic labour market is going through a cycle of candidate shortage. But the real challenge for businesses is one of retaining staff: how to keep the workplace happy and engaged so that business as usual is about doing better every year. So how do Australian businesses manage to do well? How do they keep their organisations happy?
For a company which rolled out its first product in 2002, Atlassian is the quintessential 21st century company, whose growth remarkably mirrors Australia’s evolution as a technology nation where innovation and the talent to nurture it go hand in hand. Its competitive pressures – the need to forge ahead with new products and services in a market environment dominated by many global giants – reflect those of the nation. It needs to balance two equal and opposite forces: the urgency to retain a tried and tested pipeline of competencies for its growth in the coming decade while infusing fresh talent and ideas into the engine rooms of the company. So how does Atlassian manage its accelerated growth, particularly in times of skills shortage? Where does it find the elixir of staff engagement?
Atlassian says it has more than doubled its employee headcount to almost 11,000 globally in the past three years, and still 57 per cent of Aussie Atlassians have been with the company for two-plus years and 43 per cent have a tenure of three-plus years.
It points to its low 8 per cent attrition rate as market-leading for technology companies in Australia.
Three things mainly contribute to Atlassian’s employee retention and happiness, says Avani Prabhakar, the company’s global head of talent and HR business partners – its remote work policy known as Team Anywhere; its clearly identified company values; and its employee benefits.
“A big driver of attracting and retaining talent is our Team Anywhere policy, which allows our employees to choose where they work – from home, in the office or a combination – wherever suits them best,” she says. “This choice is so much more than a ‘perk’ – it fundamentally changes how people live. Countless Atlassians have made significant life changes as a result of this flexibility, such as moving interstate, buying a house, starting a family or just having greater work-life balance.
“We also believe that remote work levels the playing field, particularly for under-represented groups whose access to careers may have been impacted by geography or defined working hours. This is crucial for creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment.
“The feedback from our employees speaks for itself – 91 per cent say our Team Anywhere policy is an important reason they stay at Atlassian, and 92 per cent say it allows them to do their best work.”
With staff working in 13 countries, the company allows its employees to work “in any country where we have a legal business entity and there’s a sufficient time-zone overlap with your team”.
As the company evolves, its values have remained constant, says Prabhakar.
“At Atlassian, we have a core set of five key values that guide everything we do: open company, no BS; build with heart and balance; don’t f..k the customer; play as a team; and be the change you seek.
“Atlassian is a values-led company and this, in turn, attracts employees who have a strong affinity with what we stand for. We see that employees are more engaged and happier when they feel connected to our beliefs as they have a shared understanding of the principles that underpin every decision.”
Staff benefits “include everything from generous family-forming allowances, parental leave, fitness and wellness reimbursement, to paid volunteering leave and charity donation-matching”, Prabhakar says. “These benefits are designed to support our people inside and outside of work so they are set up for success to do their best work.”
IAG, one of the largest insurance companies in Australia and New Zealand, is a major employer in both nations with more than 15,000 staff.
The company says its organisational happiness story centres around connecting its people and the work they do to its purpose: to make your world a safer place.
“Nurturing a culture of inclusion and belonging, we aspire for our people, customers and communities to be seen, accepted, embraced and valued for who they are,” an IAG spokesperson says. “We instil pride and create meaning for our people in how their work connects with our purpose, helping our customers and serving communities during their times of need. Encouraging people to be their authentic selves, providing meaningful work that makes a difference, and driving a culture of purpose and connection creates IAG’s organisational happiness.”
IAG’s employee engagement programs and talent retention initiatives are aimed at creating a cohesive and connected workplace. “While these programs are constantly evolving, they all ladder up to our purpose and help to elevate our values,” the company spokesperson says.
Welcome days help new starters grow their business knowledge and forge connections at the workplace. “We are big on appreciation – recognising effort, acknowledging contribution, and celebrating the big and small,” the IAG spokesperson says.
“Celebrating our people is an important part of our culture. We commemorate long-term tenures, and the significant contributions made by those who have intrinsic passion for the business.
“We amplify milestones such as new members entering the 25-year club (over 600 people) and when generations of families join the business. We have a thriving and well-connected internal community that readily shares information through our intranet, with employee network groups covering every possible interest area, with competitions and promotions to drive connection, conversation and engagement.”
IAG also provides flexible work arrangements and extensive volunteering opportunities, and offers a variety of mental health and wellbeing programs. The company group leadership team is “visible, approachable and actively involved in driving workplace engagement”, the company says.
Melbourne-based global biotechnology company CSL, which provides lifesaving products in more than 100 countries and employs 32,000 people, has five core values: patient focus; innovation; integrity; collaboration; and superior performance.
“While happiness can be a difficult metric to quantify, our yearly global employee surveys give us valuable feedback about how we can help our people feel valued and motivated at work,” says CSL’s executive director of human resources Yvette Saunders. “We receive consistent feedback that a majority of our people feel a strong connection to our purpose, which is encouraging.
“During the pandemic, we implemented wellness days for employees which do not come out of their annual leave balances. We have kept these in place and our leaders encourage their teams to use these, particularly after busy periods.
“We’ve noticed people becoming more aware of mental health management since the pandemic. People have been willing to try new things, and one of those is meditation. We have offered the Headspace app to employees at no cost, and the uptake has well exceeded our expectations.”
What is your organisational happiness story? Do you have wonderful ways of retaining talent and keeping employees happy? Share your insights: iyerp@theaustralian.com.au
