Matt Cowley: Have our business leaders got 'do-gooder fatigue'?

Matt Cowley asks: Have our business leaders got 'do-gooder fatigue'? Photo / Getty Images

COMMENT:

Bosses are tired of being the nice guy.

That's a headline I read at the weekend, from an article published in Fortune Magazine. Provocative, isn't it? But on reflection, some of it rings true locally.

The premise of the article is that business owners and leaders are experiencing 'do-gooder fatigue' from heavily prioritising employees' wellbeing during the pandemic, and beyond.

We're in a time that has been labelled across the globe as the 'great resignation'.

Managers have been, and still are, pulling out all the stops to try recruit and retain staff by focusing on employees' mental health during a time of high burnout and anxiety.

The article reports the feeling from business leaders is that they really need to get back to business.

Are our local employers fatigued from prioritising the wellbeing of their employees over their own? Well, anecdotally, many are.

I'm hearing from larger businesses that the great resignation is going to decimate the ranks of their middle management.

Middle managers are exhausted.

They've been held accountable for the loss of productivity due to abnormally high staff absenteeism, rising costs across the board, and supply chain disruptions.

The pressure to keep their teams happy has come at the expense of their own.

Boards and executives are worried. Too many skilled managers across the country are flocking overseas for more experience, cheaper costs of living, and higher salaries.

We risk losing our future home-grown talent and industry leaders.

Matt Cowley is the chief executive of the Tauranga Business Chamber. Photo / Mead Norton

And it's not just larger businesses.

If I was to describe the state of small to medium businesses across the Bay of Plenty, which make up the vast majority of local employers, I would say many are treading water.

Some local business owners have gone back to being employees because of the challenging outlook.

It would not take much, be it rising cost pressures or further staff shortages, for more small businesses to be in serious trouble.

I know plenty of hospitality business owners who are doing dishes and helping front of house staff because they are protecting the welfare of their limited staff who are also under pressure.

Employers are struggling with their staff culture because of the working from home arrangements that so many have become accustomed to after the lockdowns.

But right now it's a buyer's market, and staff are making the most of employers' desperate circumstances.

Frankly, you can't blame them for negotiating the best possible terms of employment.

There is also growing anxiety from business owners about the never ending impacts of Government interventions that are making their livelihoods unsustainable.

This year business leaders have navigated rising staff costs across the board, doubling of sick leave entitlement, two additional public holidays, and lingering absenteeism … all while supporting employee wellbeing and flexible working arrangements.

Over the next 18 months, employees will face continued cost inflation, tightening consumer spending, ongoing staff shortages, fair pay agreements, and employee redundancy insurance levies.

Government needs to be aware that it is the cumulative impact of these small interventions that has created any incredibly tough environment for business owners and their stress levels.

Now, I'm not suggesting we scrap all our efforts on employee wellbeing or flexible working, of course this is important.

But I think this all poses an important question: What does balanced wellbeing, across every level of the business, look like in our post-pandemic world?

I hope we can get to a place where employees are rewarded for their efforts and employers, who are taking the ultimate financial risks to employ staff, feel equally confident about the future.

Matt Cowley is chief executive of the Tauranga Business Chamber.