The Labor Shortage & The 5 Things We Must Do To Attract & Retain Great Talent
We don’t have a labor shortage. We have a culture shortage. People aren’t just quitting jobs—they’re quitting toxic environments, outdated mindsets, and leadership models that haven’t evolved in decades. If you want to attract and retain top talent in this new era, you don’t need to offer bigger bonuses—you need to offer better leadership.
In my work with organizations across North America and beyond, I’ve seen this shift unfold in real time. As I share in my book Workplace Culture, today’s employees are looking for alignment, not just employment. They want to contribute to something meaningful, be treated like human beings, and go home at the end of the day with energy left in the tank.
Here are five key strategies organizations must implement immediately if they want to stop the talent bleed and start attracting the right people for the long term.
1. Build Cultures That People Don’t Want to Leave
This is not about free lunches or beanbags in the breakroom. It’s about building a culture rooted in trust, transparency, and psychological safety. People thrive when they feel seen, heard, and valued—not micromanaged or minimized.
You don’t have to guess what kind of culture you’re building. Your retention rate will tell you. So will your Glassdoor reviews. And your exit interviews? Those are your best consultants.
I recently wrote about early warning signs of culture misalignment in this Breakfast Leadership blog post. If any of those sound familiar, now is the time to pivot.
2. Flexibility Isn’t a Perk—It’s the Baseline
The pandemic didn’t create the remote work revolution—it simply accelerated what was already coming. Today’s workforce demands flexibility: where they work, when they work, and how they integrate life into work.
That doesn’t mean every role should be remote. But it does mean every leader should rethink rigid structures that don’t serve the work or the people doing it.
The companies that are thriving right now are the ones that embrace results-oriented leadership over timeclock tracking. Focus on impact, not location.
3. Prioritize Mental Health and Burnout Prevention
You can’t build a high-performance culture on a foundation of exhaustion. Burnout isn’t a personal failure—it’s a cultural signal. If your people are running on fumes, the problem is systemic.
I wrote Burnout Proof after my own journey through catastrophic burnout. I’ve since helped thousands of leaders recognize the signs and implement solutions that don’t just reduce stress, but rebuild resilience.
You can start by offering:
Access to therapy or mental health support
Regular one-on-ones that include emotional check-ins
Workload audits to prevent chronic overfunctioning
For more practical ways to prevent burnout in your teams, read this post from the Breakfast Leadership blog.
4. Invest in Growth and Career Mobility
If employees can’t grow with you, they’ll grow without you. Career development is no longer a nice-to-have—it’s a retention tool. Provide clear pathways for advancement, regular skills development, and internal mentorship.
Here’s the key: don’t assume everyone wants to climb the ladder. Some want lateral growth, others want specialization. Meet your people where they are.
5. Recognition Must Be Personal, Not Performative
Recognition doesn’t have to be public or expensive—it has to be authentic. A personalized thank-you, a written note of appreciation, or a private acknowledgment in a meeting can go further than generic rewards programs.
Employees want to know their work matters. Make that visible in ways that feel meaningful to them.
If you want some inspiration on embedding gratitude into your leadership style, check out this recent article.
The Future of Work Belongs to the Culture-First Leaders
If your organization is struggling to hire or losing top talent to competitors, look at your culture before you look at your compensation plan. People will always choose a company that makes them feel safe, seen, and supported over one that pays slightly more but depletes them daily.
Want to learn how to create a workplace people never want to leave? Grab your copy of Workplace Culture and Burnout Proof, and explore more free strategies at the Breakfast Leadership blog.
Because culture isn’t a line item on a budget—it’s the heartbeat of your business.
