How employee belonging can help public services regain their key differentiator for talent (Guest blog by Accenture)

Across society, we’re seeing two parallel shifts play out in people’s attitudes to work. One is generational, the other episodic.

In the first instance, the younger generation in the workforce tend to be more driven by making a positive difference to society – and actively seeking to work for employers who share that commitment. The episodic shift was triggered by the pandemic, which enabled people to step back and think about how the careers might fit with their desired lifestyle, including greater flexibility about where and how they work.

Together, these trends are putting pressure on all leaders to keep employees engaged and motivated. All at a time when organisations are having to re-learn how to do this in the context of remote working, where the traditional approach of social events and after work drinks has been disrupted by new ways of working.

Essentially, this comes down to whether leaders can create a sense of belonging amongst their employees. Unfortunately, this is an area where the public sector seems to be struggling. Accenture’s Better to Belong research, which surveyed over 1,200 civil servants globally, found that 31% didn’t feel like they belong in their workplace. This would equate to almost 160,000 in the UK.

Challenges in a changing employment landscape

What lies behind such findings? First, some background. Not too long ago, the public sector was seen as an attractive place to work. The combination of societal purpose, good job security and a positive work-life balance was unique.

Today, things look very different. Fewer people expect or desire a “career for life” so generous pensions no longer carry the same weight. Other employers now offer increasingly flexible work arrangements that help people find their own work-life balance. And, perhaps most importantly, people now see other opportunities to help make a positive impact on society.

With the shifts being made by big private employers, people might feel they can make as much of a difference by joining a big tech player who are driving the tech sustainability agenda through the move to cloud or who are democratising technology through access and education agendas or seeking to find solutions to people’s daily challenges. As private companies move into these spaces, the public sector may struggle to compete on an equal footing. And the attributes that used to set public services apart as an employer could start to lose their drawing-power.

Restoring a sense of belonging could go a long way to answering this challenge and benefiting both employees and departments. In fact, one report in the US found that it could contribute to a 56% increase in performance and a 50% drop in employee turnover.

Bringing together the right elements

So, how do you create a sense of belonging? A clear purpose is essential. One that’s shared with colleagues and the organisation and underpinned by a belief that change aligned with this purpose can actually be affected. Another is a workplace that embraces diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) – an area which is now high up the agenda for many private sector companies.

However, one area where the public sector may be uniquely positioned to excel is in enabling employees to do interesting work and learn new skills. Few organisations in the UK do the same breadth of work as the Civil Service and this diversity of opportunity could be a major differentiating factor.

To make this a reality, leaders should ask some key questions. How do I give people real ownership over their careers and remove barriers that might make career transitions difficult? How do we make it easy for people from outside to recognise where their talents might be applied and developed within the Civil Service? And how might we make extended breaks from the Civil Service part of the career path, so people can bring back valuable new skills?

Going forward, engendering a sense of belonging will remain key, both to retention and recruitment in public services. As well as keeping existing talent on board, it could also help to attract the creative, dynamic, digitally savvy talent who’ll be needed in the workforce of the future. So it’s not just about culture – but could also be pivotal to the whole digital transformation agenda.

You can find out how to begin building this sort of environment in Accenture’s latest research. Or please feel free to get in touch for a more detailed discussion.