As she refreshed her inbox, her heart felt a sharp jab of pain. The word “resignation” popped in.
It was the third, just in six weeks. She wasn’t facing just some casual employee retention issues. This was a spiral.
Quietly, she was trembling. Breathing heavier, wondering how she can stop the avalanche.
She knew that if things continued like this, the heap would bury her.
Akansha was a team manager at a top BPO in India, and even though she excelled at what she did, she wasn’t able to point a finger at what was causing these recurring employee retention issues.
Even though each goodbye was delivered with grace, with words like, moving on, thank you for your support. Hiding underneath these messages was something deep.
More importantly, Akansha was tired of the vicious circle of hiring people every few months, only to see them leave.
Now, she wasn’t a bad leader. She had her heart in the right place and was quite strategic about the people she hired. So not that she ended up making too many recruitment errors. That wasn’t the problem.
And just like all great places to work, she also ensured her team had a comfortable working environment, where flexible hours, wellness reimbursements, and even top incentives were on the table.
Yet, for some reason, people were leaving.
At first she thought, maybe these are different times, talk Gen Z. Now, it would be a crime to expect the younger generation to stick around in one place for too long, right?
Maybe this is how it is supposed to be. So instead of trying to do more about retention, she turned her focus on hiring quickly.
“If I can create a fast-paced recruitment engine, I won’t have to worry about people leaving. I can just replace them with a snap,” she thought.
So she got to work with Jessica, the HR Manager, putting together a process where sourcing people was easier than asking for referrals internally.
Almost about turning her attention away from the employee retention issues that had just clawed in. She ignored the early signs of the soon to come avalanche.
Retention problems are like recession. At first, things appear manageable; however, one day the stocks crash, and fortunes are lost in a matter of hours, not days.
The third resignation in just six weeks was the avalanche announcing its arrival.
And now it was time for Akansha to signal mayday!
Just about a few minutes after her breath had settled down, she dropped Jessica a note.
“We need to talk.”
And soon, they were sitting across the table in the conference room.
Akansha admitted to Jessica that the situation is getting out of hand, the employee retention issues that they are facing this time are unprecedented, and even their fast-track hiring process cannot save the day.
Jessica agreed. They knew they had to find a solution. And do so quickly.
Just as they continued talking, Jessica brought up the exit interviews. The feedback was full of corporate niceties: “great learning,” “appreciate the opportunities,” “looking for a new challenge.”
Now this, right here, was the most challenging part of the puzzle. But Jessica was quick to reflect. And just as if she had a revelation herself, she started speaking in a more detective like tone, “Akansha, just see, just look at the feedback, everybody is about playing it safe, and not giving away the main reason they’re leaving. Exit interviews are a chance for employees to speak up, maybe even vent. At least that would have given us some clue. But no one is doing us that favor here either.”
Akansha quietly agreed. Just paused for a few moments, took a deep breath, and had her own spark of inspiration. “Hey! I think we should speak to Nirmala. She has been here for a long time, and perhaps, can be the pair of eyes that will give us another perspective on the situation.”
“Great idea,” said Jessica.
Soon, Nirmala entered the room and sat on a chair close to them.
Akansha took the lead, and after a bit of small talk, got to the point.
“Okay, Nirmala, you’ve been here for a while, and I trust you with your integrity, so I am sure what we speak here won’t leave the room.”
“Of course,” said Nirmala.
“Great. The reason we called you is that Jessica and I have been trying to understand why we are suddenly seeing so many resignations.
I mean, for the life of me; I don’t understand what are we missing, that people are leaving and leaving so quickly.”
Now, Nirmala wasn’t expecting to have this conversation, but she was happy that Akansha showed how much she trusted her.
“Akansha, while I can’t say why they are leaving, I can definitely speak for myself, and say why I am here. You see, the perks and flexibility that are offered here, others offer too. So that’s not a big differentiator. But when I hear of similar opportunities where I can grow more financially, I don’t just focus on that, I also focus on the fact that I am here for the connection I have. I feel connected to you, and to this company, which I’ve been with since inception. I’ve seen the difficulties, and you have been there for me when I was facing challenges.
I feel like we have a bond, a connection, which isn’t as easy to establish so quickly. So even with better benefits elsewhere, I’d still miss this connection we created, and I don’t know how a new company would treat me if I moved.
So, I won’t leave this company for as long as I don’t find an even better bargain. Right now, this hits the right spot for me when it comes to support and compensation.”
All this while, Jessica was quietly listening, and then she got up and hugged Nirmala.
“Nirmala, you’re a genius,” she said.
Nirmala was wondering what she had done to earn that praise. Jessica thanked Nirmala for her help and then Nirmala left.
After the door closed, Jessica appeared delighted. Her eyes sparkled with new found inspiration and zeal. It’s as if she had finally found what the missing link was.
And even though both Akansha and Jessica were feeling a lot better, Jessica spoke first.
“Akansha, I think I got it.” She continued to smile as she spoke.
“You know, we’ve been trying to fix this problem all wrong. Nirmala is so right. Others can easily offer what we offer, and there are bigger companies out there, who can definitely outdo us in terms of perks and benefits. Just think, why would a young person, looking for growth in life, hang around with us? Unless, we have something unique, something special. And do you know what that special is?” Akansha looked at Jessica with ever increasing curiosity.
“That special is the word support. Nirmala doesn’t work here for the perks alone, she works here, because she feels valued, and supported. She doesn’t feel like just another talent or resource, but she feels like a part of a team.
Akansha, this is a wake up call if you may. Now, I fully acknowledge how great a manager you are. But here’s a blind spot, Nirmala has just revealed to us.
From as long as I know you, you’ve been quite technical in your hiring and management, but tactical with retention. However, tactics can only go so far, what truly works is connection.
We need to work on your leadership more, from the perspective of being able to establish a deeper relationship with your team. Just like we’ve established with Nirmala.
Nirmala is a great example how retention should be done. Which means, we need to step up, and you need to step up as a leader and build a culture not around performance but around relationships.of howmeans
Now let me ask you something, how often does your team come and tell you, that they’re struggling? How comfortable do they feel telling you that they had a difficult day at home.
You see, all those comments in the exit interview reflect something deep. People don’t feel safe here. Yes, they feel appreciated for performance; they feel compensated, but they don’t feel at home.
Being a task master or a boss is one thing, but being a leader, it’s a whole new thing.
From now on, let us focus on creating a culture where people can come and tell you, ‘I’m overwhelmed,’ or ‘I’m struggling,’ or ‘I disagree.'”
Because if they can’t feel safe to do that, then the safest choice for them, is to leave.“
Astonishment overwhelmed Akansha. At first it seemed like a hard pill to swallow. But she knew Jessica wasn’t blaming her, but was just sharing her insight based on observation. After all, as an HR manager, she possessed the psychological skills to thoroughly investigate the matter. And she did!
Akansha wasted no more time, and quickly made the shift. Support, connection, and safety were the top words on her mind.
Every conversation and meeting from that point on reflected this, and soon, the shift became visible.
She had people telling her how they felt. She was telling them how she felt. She was no longer hiding her feelings from them, and instead of appearing like she had everything figured out, she was open to display her vulnerability. And people started responding with more openness. The vibe in the office had changed from bland, corporate, mumbo-jumbo to a warm and supportive culture.
Fast forward to 3 months later, the avalanche never came. What came instead was a smile on Akansha’s face. She had finally found what she had been searching all along: a place among her people, not as a boss, but as a leader. In its truest essence, she had found home! And so did her team.
In the end, it wasn’t the perks or the performance plans that turned things around. It was something far simpler—and far more human.
A shift that most leaders overlook until it’s too late.
If you’re facing employee retention issues, there’s one thing you need to address before anything else.
Want to know what it is? Ask Robin—He’s helped leaders spot it, shift it, and build the kind of teams that stay, grow, and thrive.
Disclaimer: This story is an illustrative narrative designed to convey leadership insights through storytelling. The characters and events are fictional and meant to reflect real-world situations many leaders face. Any resemblance to actual persons or events is purely coincidental.