Understanding why people leave their jobs is imperative for leaders because it enables them to make informed decisions that support employee well-being and satisfaction. This is especially true for leaders of teams that work directly with customers (e.g., sales, retail, and healthcare workers). Often, people don’t leave a job because of the pay or benefits, but rather because of the overall experience they have at work.
Consider these statistics:
- 18% of healthcare workers quit within their first year, according to the National Library of Medicine.
- 45% of sales teams see more than 30% of their people leave each year, according to Anthony Chaine of Elite Sales Leadership Consulting.
- 30%-45% of customer service workers leave their jobs each year, according to GlowTouch.
It costs organizations an average of $25,000–$40,000 for every employee that leaves because of lost expertise and project delays.
At TiER1 Performance, we love learning what makes people perform well and feel good at their jobs. We believe creating a workplace where everyone feels valued, engaged, and a sense of purpose in their work is key to supporting retention. We partnered with HSD Metrics to explore why healthcare workers, who are typically fueled by their passion for helping others, decide to leave.
Want to see how much turnover cost your organization last year? Use HSD Metrics’ turnover calculator fueled by proprietary industry knowledge.
Our Hypothesis into Employee Attrition
In 2021, experts from the University of Louisville partnered with HSD Metrics—a TiER1 Impact company—to uncover the underlying reasons for high turnover rates among healthcare workers. The team quickly realized that traditional methods for measuring turnover were insufficient, as they often employed a one-size-fits-all approach that failed to capture the complexities of the employee experience. Questions regarding communication, pay, and supervision did not address the nuanced realities of different roles and individual perceptions.
To grasp the full spectrum of factors contributing to employee turnover, the TiER1 team proposed a two-tiered approach that considers the whole human and addresses both foundational and existential needs within the workplace. The first tier addresses the fundamental aspects of job satisfaction, including equitable pay, workplace safety, and adequate job resources, all of which are necessary for employees to engage fully with their work.
The second tier focuses on the more profound, meaning-based factors, including connections with leadership, belongingness, and growth and advancement opportunities. We believe that when these deeper human needs are met, employees not only feel engaged, but they also feel a part of a community.
All the factors used in the survey are grouped by level and listed below.
| Level 1 Factors | Level 2 Factors |
| The essential conditions for employee satisfaction. | The degree to which employees feel emotionally, mentally, and spiritually connected to leadership and the organization. |
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What the Survey Results Tell Us
We leveraged data from 1,464 responses to an exit survey that was distributed to 250,000 nurses from about 25 Midwestern hospitals over 10 years. Participants were asked to select all the reasons that contributed to their departure and identify the most important reason for their leaving. There are two questions we can answer from this data:
- Why do people leave their organization?
- What is the most important reason that people leave their organization?
When considering why people leave and the most important reason for why people leave, level 1 and level 2 factors played an equal role.
Why do people leave their organization?
- Respondents selected level 2 factors at a slightly higher rate than level 1 factors (2,189 selections versus 2,164).
- Compensation was the most selected level 1 factor at 399 selections.
- Supervision or management was the most selected level 2 factor at 368 selections.
What is the most important reason that people leave their organization?
- The data showed that level 2 factors were as significant as level 1 factors (337 selections versus 339).
- Compensation was the most selected level 1 factor at 83 selections.
- Supervision or management was the most selected level 2 factor at 104 selections.
What This Means for Your Organization
These results tell us that while competitive pay is essential, providing a healthy, engaging workplace with supportive management has a greater impact on retention. Ask yourself:
- When did you last assess your employees’ experience?
- How familiar are you with the emotional, mental, and spiritual needs of your workforce?
- In what ways do you celebrate individual achievements and milestones, beyond just professional accomplishments?
Building a healthy, high-performing organization requires focusing on meaningful changes that fulfill employee needs. When we step into an employee experience design engagement, we focus on:
- Identifying and empowering moments that matter to recognize team members’ personal achievements with genuine appreciation, demonstrating that their value extends beyond their professional contributions.
- Aligning growth goals and offering diverse training and development opportunities to ensure that employees are not just equipped but are inspired to pursue their personal and professional growth paths.
- Cultivating trust by decentralizing decision-making powers and empowering employees with significant responsibilities to create a more agile and flexible organization.
Build a Powerful and Lasting Employee Experience
Reducing turnover and improving the employee experience presents both challenges and opportunities. Explore how TiER1 Performance can partner with you to develop a culture that promotes growth, honors individual contributions, and encourages long-term commitment. Download TiER1’s Employee Experience White Paper for insights on how to intentionally design your employee experience for maximum impact.
Looking for a partner to support the activation of your organization’s employee experience strategy? We’d love to chat. Fill out this form or call us at (859) 415-1000.
This article was originally authored by Will Phillips.
