Southern Miss Business Summer 2022 Newsletter

A few weeks ago, I heard the term "quiet quitting" for the first time. Being a scholar of organizational behavior and human resources management, I was intrigued and decided to do some investigating. Apparently, quiet quitting has is a mainstream concept and has received considerable attention in the popular press recently as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Guardian, and several other media outlets have published articles on quiet quitting within the past few weeks. Quiet quitting is when an employee doesn't actually quit their job, but they stop doing extra things, going above and beyond, or putting in maximum effort. From simply mentally checking out at work to not accepting additional work without additional pay, many employees are handling their responsibilities but doing the bare minimum. This certainly isn't a new idea (have you seen the movie Office Space?) but it seems to be happening a great deal currently. Perhaps it has become more prevalent or received more media attention due to the Great Resignation and the tight labor market we are experiencing. Some don't see this trend as a problem. After all, they are simply putting their foot down and only doing their job. However, many managers and employers see this as a major problem. In fact, much of the behaviors that are being pushed aside would seem to fall into the category of organizational citizenship behaviors (OCBs) and OCBs are essential to a healthy, functional organization. Quiet quitting seems to be a phenomenon worth exploring.

So, why would employees quiet quit? While this isn't an exhaustive list of reasons, here are a few possible causes.

• They don't see a return on their investment of effort, or their efforts don't seem to be appreciated or rewarded. This can be particularly frustrating if others who do not put in as much effort or go above and beyond seem to receive the same or similar rewards. Equity theory suggests that when employees see inequity of this type, one of the logical ways to restore equity is to reduce effort.
• They do not want to sacrifice time with family and friends for the sake of their employer. Work life balance has been growing in importance with employees and it seems even more important with younger generations.
• They are experiencing burn out. The pandemic pushed many people to their limits both professionally and personally and it has taken a toll on the wellbeing of many. Quiet quitting may be the only way short of leaving the organization to cope with what they are feeling.

Understanding why so many employees are quiet quitting is important and it deserves a lot of attention. Once we have a better understanding, we can prescribe solutions to the problem. Until then, there are a few things that managers could do to help combat quiet quitting.

• Recognize and reward effort and performance. I know that sounds simplistic but far too often managers take for granted the things their employers do daily to make things work. Take the time to praise their efforts. Reward and celebrate their performance and the organization's accomplishments. Let them know you appreciate their work.
• Make sure that you distinguish between top performers and average performers. Nothing kills morale quicker than seeing that top performers receive the same rewards as average to poor performers. Why put in the extra effort or utilize your talents to the fullest if those who do not receive the same outcomes?
• Recognize healthy boundaries are good for both employees and employers. Backing off on "extra work" isn't necessarily a bad thing if it means employees are healthier mentally and physically. Healthy boundaries will improve job performance in most instances.
• Pay attention to early signs of burn out and ask affected employees how you can help. If an employee appears to be disengaging or struggling, find out what's going on and do what you can to address their problems or concerns. Show care and concern for your employees and they will more readily go above and beyond.
• Enrich jobs so that employees receive more fulfillment and enjoyment from doing them. We have seen a lot of job enlargement during the pandemic but increasing the required skill variety, demonstrating the importance of the work, creating autonomy, and giving timely positive and constructive feedback is critical to making jobs more interesting and motivating. Also, provide employees with more flexibility in how they do their jobs and attempt to embed things they find intrinsically motivating.
• Reduce role ambiguity so that employees know exactly what their role and responsibilities are. Job creep can easily happen if job roles and responsibilities are not clearly defined, and this can create inefficiencies for the organization as well as stress for employees.

It will be interesting to see if the quiet quitting trend persists and if organizational research provides any further guidance on how to avoid and remedy it. For now, I hope these observations are helpful.

Southern Miss Business recently received a No. 8 ranking for Best Online MBA Programs in the South by Fortune Education. Southern Miss is the only college or university in the state of Mississippi to be ranked in the top 30. The Top-10 ranking marks a significant jump for USM, which was ranked No. 19 last year. Dr. Steven Stelk, MBA director and assistant teaching professor of finance, notes that faculty and leaders within the College of Business and Economic Development recognized several years ago the value of online delivery for students.

“We are committed to offering a flexible and affordable program that helps graduates improve the value they bring to their professional and personal communities," Dr. Stelk added.

To determine the rankings, Fortune Education invited more than 200 online MBA programs to participate. In all, 104 programs completed the questionnaire. That information, along with data collected from companies and executives, was used as the core of each ranking. The final ranking is made up of four components: Program Score, Fortune 1000 Score, Brand Score, and Prestige Score.