Frontline workers are the backbone of an organization—and leaders can help create a better employee experience.

Blog Post

Three actions to boost frontline engagement and retention

– Frontline employees are struggling to build and maintain their networks at work. Leaders who support them are likely to see an impact on retention.
Article

Will a labor crunch derail plans to upgrade US infrastructure?

– There’s a historic and widening labor shortfall in the US construction sector. Yet it extends far beyond jobsites and varies by location, demanding tailored solutions.
Blog Post

Tearing the ‘paper ceiling’: McKinsey supports effort driving upward mobility for millions of workers

– Bachelor’s degree requirements, the default for most middle and high-wage jobs, exclude many skilled workers. A new nationwide campaign is encouraging employers to change hiring practices.
Report

Race in the workplace: The frontline experience

– Three of four frontline workers want to be promoted, but less than one in four achieves it. Companies can take targeted actions to better support these workers.
Podcast

The Great Attrition in frontline retail—and what retailers can do about it

– New research reveals which aspects of the employee experience matter most to US frontline retail workers. Retailers must pay attention and act quickly or risk losing more than half their store staff.
Article

Bridging the advancement gap: What frontline employees want—and what employers think they want

– Improving opportunities for low-wage hourly employees to advance their careers can raise US workforce skill levels and give a powerful boost to inclusion.
Article

For many Americans, economic opportunity seems increasingly out of reach

– Low unemployment doesn’t seem to dispel the gloom about inflation, the McKinsey American Opportunity Survey shows.
Article

Around the world, nurses say meaningful work keeps them going

– While some surveyed nurses said they plan to leave direct patient care, the effects of COVID-19 on the nursing workforce may be leveling off.
Blog Post

Making work meaningful from the C-suite to the frontline

– By highlighting the impact work has across these five sources, leaders can create a greater sense of meaning for their people.

Essential workers are more essential than ever.

Article

Taking a skills-based approach to building the future workforce

– Our work with the Rework America Alliance highlights how a skills-based approach can help US employers expand talent pools and retain great workers—even through economic uncertainty.
Article

Network effects: How to rebuild social capital and improve corporate performance

– People’s professional networks have shrunk since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, while companies’ attrition and hiring challenges are growing. To help reverse these trends, people and organizations will need to manage workplace interactions more intentionally. Here’s how.
Interview

Capability building for frontline workers: A conversation with Kevin Carmody

– Effective capability building programs enable organizations to develop the mindsets, behaviors, and skills needed to power a transformation and achieve their full potential. McKinsey senior partner Kevin Carmody talks about the importance of building capabilities in frontline workers and their role in the success of a company’s transformation.
Article - McKinsey Quarterly

Meet the psychological needs of your people—all your people

– Too many employers pay too little heed to the needs of the lower earners in their company. Here’s why—and how—they should shift gears.
Blog Post

When the grass is truly greener: How companies are retaining frontline talent

– Our research suggests that nearly half of employers are not experiencing higher turnover than in previous years. What are they doing differently to better retain their talent?
Blog Post

The Great Attrition: Same turnover, but the “why” differs by industry

– In the Great Attrition, specific drivers of attrition vary by sector. Employers must address their industry’s unique circumstances to turn attrition into attraction.

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