Two out of three South African professionals are ‘highly likely’ to leave their jobs in 2022 because of a lack of face time with leaders within their company, according to BusinessTech.
Recruitment specialist Robert Walters Group’s annual employee survey of 4 000 white-collar professionals found that remote managers negatively impact company culture, with 60% of professionals reporting feeling ‘disengaged’ due to lack of face time with their bosses or line managers.
‘Results from the survey indicate a correlation between a decrease in performance and morale for professionals who claim they see their manager (face-to-face) less than once a week. Both performance and morale steadily increased for professionals who spent more days in the office with their manager.’
Nearly half stated that less interaction with their manager has negatively affected productivity.
On speaking to their manager when working from home, 22% “don’t really communicate with a manager when working from home” – up from just 3% who stated the same at the beginning of the pandemic.
Many professionals believe that this increasing lack of contact has resulted in them being overlooked for new opportunities (44%), progression (37%), and training (26%).
Samantha-Jane Gravett, associate director for Robert Walters – Africa, said: “Professionals striving for progression want to show initiative, adaptability, and the ability to handle responsibility by themselves – and so by nature, they won’t necessarily ask for more face time with their manager as they feel it works against the point they are trying to prove.
Up to 62% of professionals would be ‘put off’ a new job offer not delivered in person (F2F or video call): generic email (57%), voice call (33%), or a voicemail are the approaches that would put prospective candidates off.
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