If your Culture is so great, why is everyone leaving?
When The Numbers And Narrative Don't Match
During a meeting over coffee with a nursing home executive, he shared his frustration about the number of employee replacements he is dealing with.
I asked some probing questions, and it turns out the home had a turnover rate exceeding 180%, three times the statewide rate in Ohio(according to The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) as of March 24, 2023), meaning many of their positions were filled multiple times during the year. He cited a lack of work ethic as the primary reason.
Perhaps a Different Perspective Could Help
I told him that it seems more likely that there is a deeper issue with the workplace culture than the state of his employees’ work ethic.
I offered to conduct an employee experience survey to help get to the root of the problem, or at least to come visit and make some third-party observations, but he wasn't interested.
In his words, there isn't a problem with the culture; his nursing home is “a great place to work” and they “routinely have pizza parties and potlucks.”
He said that after our meeting, he was picking up burgers for the company cookout, and he finished our conversation with, "The problem isn't the job, it's that this generation is too lazy and they don't want to work.”
Pizza parties aren’t a Metric
Pizza and burgers are nice, but his employees could have them whenever they wanted. He wasn’t ready to hear that.
Based on the evidence presented, there is a strong disconnect between the leadership team and those in the ever-revolving workforce.
REALITY CHECK
According to a 2025 LinkedIn news story, 4 in 10 workers are willing to take a pay cut, "particularly if it means working for a company better aligned to their values ... "
Using superficial activities rather than data to assess workplace health creates a false impression. Pizza parties are activities, but turnover is an outcome. Potlucks are activities, but quits and call-offs are outcomes. Employee appreciation lunches are activities, but disciplinary actions are outcomes.
The reality check is this: whether you run a nursing home, a service business, or a manufacturing facility, you aren’t the decider about how good your culture is; your workers are.
What is the health of your workplace culture, according to your workers, and how are you measuring it? Where are you struggling and what are you doing about it?
I would love to read your comments below. And if you would like to discuss how you can reduce turnover, reach out today.
