Last year, according to SHRM, an average of more than 3.98 million workers quit their jobs each month. 2021 holds the highest resignation average on record, topping the 2019 average of 3.5 million. CNBC reports that the “Great Resignation” is still in full swing, with job resignations still up 23% above pre-pandemic levels.

Not every company is being hit equally hard; some have luck on their side, and some are throwing their employee retention machines into high gear. Here are a few of the levers you can pull to keep your employees while your competitors sweat out the “Great Resignation”:

Invest Heavily in Upskilling, Reskilling, and Internal Mobility

Today’s Millennial and Gen Z employees care deeply about professional development and know that learning is the key to adapting to the fast-paced changes of industry in a globalized world. LinkedIn’s 2021 Workforce Learning Report provides powerful data points to argue for ramping up your professional development activities for internal mobility. Consider these key facts:

• Employees at companies with internal mobility stay almost 2x longer.
• 51% of learning & development pros say that internal mobility is more of a priority now than before the pandemic, and budgets are back to pre-pandemic levels.
• 91% of managers are supportive of their team finding other opportunities within their organization.

Just a few years ago, employees would leave when they felt they should be eligible for a promotion, but were denied. Now they are looking farther into their career horizons and determining whether or not their current employer is invested in their internal mobility. If not, many don’t wait until the writing is on the wall to move on, and especially not in this candidate’s market.

Create Employee Recognition Programs

Human beings have a deep-seated need for recognition, especially in areas they consider to be important in their own lives and to their feeling of importance. There are also pragmatic reasons for craving recognition; it improves the way their colleagues interact with them and it portends future promotions and raises. Hard work should earn a sense of appreciation.

There is an abundance of data on the connection between employee recognition and retention, and employers with high engagement and retention levels typically do this well. Among the programs they create, rewards from managers, peer recognition, online wish lists and even informal notes from management all help to promote the individual’s sense of being appreciated on the job. The more diversified your programs, the more employees will be positively affected, and the greater the impacts on engagement and retention.

Create a More Positive, Uplifting Workplace Culture

Workplace satisfaction, engagement, and retention are all stronger in workplaces that foster a sense of community and organizational integrity. When employees feel that their leaders at every level act with integrity, and with the best interests of their subordinates, they enjoy a much more positive work experience. That filters down to how colleagues interact with and help one another. Conversely, when workers don’t feel that they have support from managers and co-workers, they feel this reflects poorly on the organization’s values. And you guessed it… they look for the exits. Conduct workplace culture surveys and aim to quickly correct any cultural issues you find that could be prompting resignations.

Add Work-Life Balance Flexibility

We’ve been reporting for years on the generational shifts in attitudes toward workplace conditions and benefits. None have remained consistently more important to the younger working generations than work-life balance. Companies that offer flexible work shifts and hours, the ability to work from home at least part-time, to get work done at night, and to use paid time off as they see fit reap the rewards of satisfied and loyal employees. This is especially important to working parents who have to balance family and professional responsibilities. In the post-pandemic world, many employees have discovered that they can work just as productively (if not more) from home, and the desire to shift some of their time away from the office has grown. Accommodating these needs are keys to retention that only figure to become more important now that remote work is becoming a new norm.

Observe the Signals that a Valuable Employee May Resign

The last line of defense in an employee retention campaign is observation of resignation signals in top performers. If a once-engaged employee seems less engaged in meetings, or if his or her work quality diminishes, these are obvious signs of mental disengagement, which often precedes resignation. Any deviations from normal work patterns can also signal readiness to move on. The employee may seem less interested in pleasing a boss or may be grumbling about relationship problems with the manager. He or she may be slacking with deadlines or seem less willing to take on longer-term projects. Some of the most certain telltale signs of an employee preparing to resign are increased single days off (not for vacation), late arrivals, early departures, and a spike in LinkedIn activity. Top performers can be very difficult to replace in this market, so be diligent in noticing these signals. Companies with a willingness to listen to and communicate with their workers about what matters most to them will always have the edge in employee retention, and deservedly so. Engage your workers in frequent discussions about the workplace initiatives that would matter most to them and build your anti-resignation efforts from there.