Jobs/Appointments
How Businesses Can Focus on Employees to Avoid The Great Resignation
By Hyther Nizam
Across the globe, The Great Resignation has become a source of concern among businesses. It refers to the unprecedented number of workers quitting their jobs in the Covid-19 and post-pandemic eras.
In Nigeria, businesses have recently seen their fair share of voluntary employee resignations. Most notable was the “big quit,” an exodus of top tech talents from Nigerian Banks. Nigerian millennials and Gen Zers, who comprise a large percentage of job-hoppers, also account for the majority of the young workforce population in the country. Now, they are re-evaluating their working experiences after the hard hit of the pandemic. The Deloitte Global 2022 Gen Z and Millennial Survey reveals that the youngest generations in the workplace are now seeking balance, prioritising happiness, and expressing higher expectations for compensation.
With an unemployment rate of just over 33%, you may think few employed Nigerians can really afford to leave their jobs. But the truth is, even here, employers aren’t immune to The Great Resignation. Thanks to the rise of remote work, Nigerian workers (especially those with in-demand skills) can truly compete in the global job market, and not limit themselves to regional roles. They have faced many of the same pressures as other workers around the world as a result of the pandemic, meaning they have the same temptations to start their own businesses or enter the freelance market.
What can businesses do to avoid losing employees to the Great Resignation? While the answer may vary depending on industry and market, the one universally key solution is to earn employee support.
The importance of employee loyalty
Before digging into how organisations can earn employee support, it’s important to remember why it matters. Losing an employee can take a big toll on your company (with the effect magnified for smaller organisations). On average, it takes 41 days to fill a position. That’s 41 days other people in the business have to do all of a former employee’s duties in addition to their own.
Further, replacing an employee can be incredibly expensive. According to the analytics and advisory company, Gallup, it can cost one-half to two times the employee’s annual salary to replace them. Whichever way you cut it, you could give that employee a substantial salary increase and it would still be more financially viable than replacing them.
It’s also worth pointing out that there’s a positive correlation between good employee experiences and good customer experiences. That makes sense—a single positive interaction with an employee can dramatically alter how a customer perceives and experiences the company. The chances of a positive interaction taking place are much slimmer in companies that have high levels of employee turnover and a lack of institutional experience.
Building employee support
With that in mind, how should companies go about building the employee experiences they need to ensure they have the full support of their workers?
The HR team can leverage cloud technology and implement a comprehensive human resource management system (HRMS) in order to automate most of their mundane manual tasks. Through HRMS, an organisation can also create a self-service model so employees have a single portal for various activities, such as applying for leave and adding medical claims. By creating workflows, the company can ensure that when a request is raised, the appropriate approver is automatically notified. Automating processes will free up the HR team to focus on employee engagement activities.
Rethinking talent acquisition
The rise of remote work as a result of the pandemic saw many people leave big cities for smaller towns and villages. For some, the move was inspired by the prospect of a better quality of life; for others, it was about being closer to family.
Rather than lament the loss of centralised offices in big cities, smart organisations should see this as an opportunity. Instead of fighting over the same pool of talent available in metro cities, they can create opportunities for those living in non-urban centres or rural areas, and invest in skill development.
At Zoho, for instance, we have always believed that talent is everywhere, though opportunities are not. We have traditionally hired people from all backgrounds and opened offices away from city centres in order to tap under-utilised talent in smaller towns and rural areas. We expanded this approach during the pandemic by opening smaller, satellite offices wherever we had enough employees residing, instead of prompting them to come back to the office. We have been hiring locally in these satellite offices. By creating opportunities in the sought-after tech sector in non-urban and rural areas, we help communities retain talent and flourish. This adds a sense of purpose to the job, which also helps in retaining talent.
The right (virtual) environment
Even if an organisation meets its employees’ needs when it comes to working location, it’s still important for it to provide the best possible working environment (even if it’s a virtual one).
One of the most effective ways of doing this is to take a considered approach to the software solutions your employees work with on a daily basis. Rather than a patchwork of software solutions, for example, organisations can benefit from a unified enterprise software suite that meets all their needs—from documentation to meetings, to CRM. In an increasingly hybrid work environment, keeping data and processes on a unified system leads to better visibility and fosters cross-functional collaboration.
A holistic approach
Employers looking to ensure that their businesses do not fall prey to The Great Resignation need to have an understanding of the concerns Gen Z and millennial employees have with respect to the workplace and their career paths. They should be deliberate in creating a flexible working experience where the employee can thrive in a globally competitive environment.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigerian human resources management company, SeamlessHR, has raised a $9 million Series-A extension round, three years after it raised $10 million Series A funding.
The company plans to use the new funding to drive its expansion across Africa, which may include acquisitions.
The fresh funding was backed the Gates Foundation and Helios Digital Ventures. This is a change from the norm as the raise in 2022 was led by TLcom Capital, with significant contributions from Capria Ventures, Lateral Capital, Enza Capital, Ingressive Capital, and some private investors.
The startup builds world-class cloud solutions to help organisations manage most HR processes on one platform, will be looking to acquire a firm in Nigeria and set its sight on new frontiers in Southern and East Africa.
The new round of funding brings SeamlessHR’s total fund raised to about $25 million.
Before it raised the $10 million in 2022, it raised an undisclosed seed round from the same investors and Consonance Investment Managers in 2020. SeamlessHR, founded in 2018, raised a $150,000 pre-seed round from Tofino Capital and Ventures platform in 2019.
Announcing the raise, Mr Emmanuel Okeleji, SeamlessHR’s Co-founder and CEO said the raise will allow it to continue serving both private and public entities.
“Over the last 5 years, we have expanded across the continent to become the dominant HR and Payroll Software for medium to large enterprises in Africa.
“While we continue to accelerate our work to optimize workforce productivity in both the public and private sectors across the continent, much of our attention will also be on empowering hardworking Africans with responsible credit products that will help them use their employment as collateral to enjoy a better life,” he said.
SeamlessHR comprehensive suite of tools covers everything from core HR functions and performance management to payroll and recruitment. In 2024, they added an e-procurement platform to their product offerings.
Among some of its customer base including PwC, Sterling Bank, and Lagos Business School as well as entities in Ghana and Tunisia.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Lagos State House of Assembly on Friday named four new principal officers, following the impeachment of the former Speaker, Mr Mudashiru Obasa, on Monday.
Mr Obasa, who was ousted as Speaker in absentia, a position he has held for the last nine years, was replaced by Mrs Mojisola Meranda (APC-Apapa 1).
Mr Obasa was impeached on Monday over alleged gross misconduct by 32 out of the 40 members.
The Clerk of the House, Mr Lekan Onafeko, was also suspended over alleged gross financial impropriety.
The House also dissolved all the standing committees inaugurated by the former speaker.
On Friday, Mrs Meranda, while presiding over plenary as Speaker, said the appointment of new officers arose from the change in the leadership of the House.
“The House has named Mr Temitope Adewale (APC-Ifako-Ijaiye 1) as the new Majority Leader, while Mr Adedamola Kasunmu (APC- Ikeja 1) is the new Deputy Majority Leader.
“This House has also named the Chief Whip, Mr Setonjo David (APC-Badagry 2), while the Deputy Chief Whip is now Mr Babatunde Saani (APC-Kosofe 2),” she said.
Before Mr Obasa’s impeachment, Mr Mojeed Adams was the Majority Leader, while Adedamola Kasunmu was the Deputy Leader.
Mr Mojeed Adams, the new Deputy Speaker, was the former Chief Whip, while Mr Setonji David was the Deputy Chief Whip.
Business Post reports that three lawmakers, primarily Mr Obasa, Mr Adams and Mr Akinsanya, were absent at the first plenary presided over by the new leadership.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Fidelity Bank Plc has received the authorisation of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to appoint three directors to its board, a statement from the lender has disclosed.
Business Post reports that the bank picked Mr Abdullahi Sarki Mohammed as an independent non-executive director, Ms Obiaku Augusta Okam as a non-executive director, and Mr Sufiyanu Ibrahim Garba as an executive director, all effective January 14, 2025.
The company disclosed that the three directors were chosen to strengthen its leadership in a strategic move to sustain its impressive performance, as Mr Isa Mohammed Inuwa and Mr Chidi Agbapu retired from the board as an independent non-executive director and a non-executive director, respectively.
The chairman of Fidelity Bank, Mr Mustafa Chike-Obi, in a notice to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited, welcomed the appointees to the board and looked “forward to leveraging their extensive experience to drive the bank’s strategic objectives and further its growth trajectory.”
Mr Mohammed brings over 36 years of experience in financial services, public administration, and human resources development, having held key leadership and executive roles at prestigious institutions including First Bank of Nigeria Plc and Polaris Bank Limited. His extensive expertise encompasses banking, public service, and business advisory.
On her part, Ms Okam boasts more than 30 years of impressive experience across the banking, financial services, real estate, and retail sectors. Currently the Managing Director/CEO of Skycurve Nigeria Limited, she has held leadership positions at Zenith Bank Plc and Nigeria International Bank Limited (Citibank).
As for Mr Garba, he has over 30 years of multifunctional and cross-border experience at leading financial institutions in Nigeria and the United Kingdom including executive and leadership roles at prestigious financial and non-financial institutions such as Access Bank Plc, Union Bank of Nigeria Plc and Keystone Bank Limited. His career background spans banking, financial services, public service, general management and business origination across a broad range of segments.
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