Winning the Retention Game Through Renewal

The Great Canadian Leadership Podcast

For 2023, it’s not just a ping-pong table that’s going to keep employees (and you) motivated and feeling appreciated. HR trends for 2023 say that organizations will need to focus more on the well-being of employees. A Forbes article shares that 20-50% of all employee attrition is attributed to burnout.

This episode we’re discussing how to win the retention game through the idea of renewal. How do we make people more resilient against burnout? The importance of quality short breaks moves us to a better flow and quality to our work. We have been moving between hybrid, remote, and the office…we start to run out of mental energy, stop making rational decisions and feel stressed. For 2023, it’s important to prioritize renewal. How do you lead that? What does that look and sound like?

We discuss with Kerry O’Brien, Sr. Talent Development PM at Axonify, about how to put renewal into our work and why it impacts the retention and productivity of the people in your organization.

Our guest, Kerry O’Brien, is a 14-year veteran of Talent Development, primarily growing and scaling teams in the tech sector. This experience, combined with his master’s degree in leadership, has led to a leadership practice that centers on self-care, curiosity, and goal achievement. You can hear him on podcasts and keynotes talking about everything from learning frameworks to story crafting to energy management and being a better listener, usually with parenting stories thrown in for good measure.

Burnout is real for an increasing number of people in the workplace. A 2022 study by the McKinsey Health Institute highlighted how the impact of the pandemic has seen burnout levels reach an all-time high, with one in four employees experiencing symptoms of burnout. Microsoft’s Chief People Officer, Kathleen Hogan, encapsulates the challenge as a Human Energy Crisis.

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