🏁 Axios Finish Line: "Rise and grind" rebellion

Plus: Stunning stat on worker engagement | Wednesday, August 17, 2022

Open in app View in browser   Presented By West Monroe   Axios Finish Line By Mike Allen, Erica Pandey and Jim VandeHei ·Aug 17, 2022 Aug 17, 2022 Welcome back. Send your feedback and questions to finishline@axios.com. Smart Brevity™ count: 368 words ... 1 min.     1 big thing: The anti-work movement Illustration: Natalie Peeples/Axios   Here's a twist on the post-COVID, work-from-anywhere phenomenon: There's a rising "get-paid-don't-work movement on social media. Why it matters: With employers grappling with people working from home and a tight talent market, they now face what the Wall Street Journal calls "quiet quitting." What's happening: This is a rebellion against the "rise and grind" ethos. The rising approach is to work to live, instead of live to work. Don't leave your job — but focus on fun, fulfilling activities outside of work while staying on the payroll. This is far easier when you're working remotely, and there's no pressure to show your face at the office from 9 to 5 — or longer. Some workers are even using the extra time to get multiple jobs, realizing that remote work means they can be mediocre at two jobs instead of good at one, the Journal reports. The big picture: This "quiet quitting" trend — which is playing out among younger workers on Instagram and TikTok — is starkly visible in Gallup's latest polling on worker engagement. Just 31% of workers born after 1989 — Gen Z and younger millennials — say they're "engaged" at work. And they're far less likely than their older counterparts to feel their work has a purpose. Our thought bubble: We're seeing the effects of longer-term distributed work on the next generation of employees. Younger workers are craving mentorship and camaraderie they're not getting from the new world of work — so they're disengaging. Reality check: Don't glorify the grind. Boosting engagement among younger workers doesn't equate to eroding their work-life balance and demanding more online hours. That'll turn the quiet quitters into real quitters. If CEOs and managers take away flexibility, workers will bolt. Instead, leaders need to communicate better why their mission matters, check in with employees, and figure out how to export company culture via Zoom. Share this story ... Go deeper: "Your office, forever changed."     A message from West Monroe Which corporate departments impede digital transformation?     We asked 700 C-suite execs how aligned specific departments are to their digital vision. They said: HR impedes digital transformation the most. IT advances digital transformation the most. It takes everyone working together to become a digital business. Find out how.     💡 Your thought bubble Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios   We want to hear your experiences and strategies: Have you seen a rejection of "rise and grind" culture at your office? Are you hearing about it from your friends and kids? What do you think? Just hit "reply" to this email, or reach us at finishline@axios.com.   Thanks for reading. Invite friends to sign up. Are you a fan of this email format? It's called Smart Brevity®. Over 300 orgs use it — in a tool called Axios HQ — to drive productivity with clearer workplace communications.   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. If you're interested in advertising, learn more here. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. Axios, 3100 Clarendon B‌lvd, Arlington VA 22201   You received this email because you signed up for newsletters from Axios. Change your preferences or unsubscribe here.   Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up now to get Axios in your inbox.   Follow Axios on social media: