Creatives Spill the Tea: A Pulse Check on Employee Happiness

At Working Not Working, we are on a mission to build the future of creative opportunity. But we’re looking around and it seems that opportunity is feeling more and more scarce lately. Forrester is predicting 2024 is the year of the “Employee Experience Recession,” with lots of global corporations not only cutting back on jobs but also DEIB and other employee wellness programs. 

So we wondered, “How TF is our community feeling right now and what can we do to help??” We launched the first annual Working Not Working (Un)Happiness Survey to all of our full-time talent to find out how they were feeling and what companies can be doing better. 
The results? They were…well, sad. However, there’s still hope for any organization that’s ready to double down on a retention strategy and look at their people as HUMANS, not headcount.

WNW (Un)Happiness Survey Results

All graphics are drawn by Saskia Keultjes (WNW Member #24033) and animated by Ceilidh Smith (WNW Member #127501)

We surveyed about a thousand full-time creatives, including art directors, content strategists, designers, and writers. While the results might not be exactly what we wanted to hear, we’re grateful for the candid responses. It’s a reality check on the state of our industry and we’re optimistic that sharing these hard truths will kick the industry into high gear. 

If you’re working in HR or have a say in employee retention, we suggest you take a good look at what’s going on in your organization and make some moves (scroll down for our suggestions). After all, happy employees lead to happy customers, great products, and ultimately, a successful business. Let’s get into some key findings that really blew our minds.

Plain and Simple: Creative Employees Aren’t Happy

Across the board, full-time creatives of all ages, genders, and locations are feeling somewhere between “meh”  and miserable. Unfortunately, this is consistent with greater dissatisfaction, AKA “The Great Gloom.” With RTO mandates and less focus on wellness programs, we’re not surprised. This is concerning news for both employers and creatives alike.

Creative Employees are Ready to Jump Ship

Most of our creative employees said they were ready to leave their company sooner rather than later. More and more, employees are less likely to stay in a job that makes them unhappy. This leads to high turnover rates, which can cause panic or worse– a domino effect and ultimately be costly for businesses.

Rise in Side Hustles

Over 65% of respondents are currently working as freelancers outside of their full-time employer. And of those creatives, half of them told us their current employer is not aware nor do they have any intention of telling them. This rise in side-hustles can be attributed to the desire for extra income, creative expression, and personal fulfillment. However, it also highlights a growing dissatisfaction with traditional work arrangements and a need for more flexibility and autonomy.

Why are creative employees unhappy?

While you might have some guesses as to why these creative employeess aren’t happy or committed to their work, we’ll lay it out for you. We asked our creative employees to point out some glaring issues with their current companies, so we highly encourage you to take this list as “what not to do” if you want to keep your team intact.  

• Lack of mentorship (97%)

• Lack of educational opportunities/stipends (94%)

• No clarity around career growth (97%)

• Uninformed of new opportunities/lack of internal communication (96%)

• Projects do not align with passions and interests (90%)

• No support for employee resource groups (96%)

• Lack of adequate medical and wellness benefits (90%)

Notice that salary didn’t show up on this list. While it typically gets prospective employees in the door, salary only keeps them an estimated 24 days longer. Statistically speaking, it’s culture that keeps employees an extra 8.5 months. 

What are employers doing right? 

We couldn’t just point out the negative! We asked our respondents what their employer does that shows they value them, and we weren’t disappointed. While there’s plenty to improve on, some companies are showing they care. Consider this a list of “what to do” to boost employee retention.  

• Respect Weekends

• Encourage Work-Life Balance

• Assign Projects that Align with your Creative Interests/Passions

• Encourage Learning New Skills 

• Provide Good Medical/Wellness Benefits

Boosting Employee Retention and Happiness

We spend most of our lives at work, and it’s employers’ responsibility to cultivate an environment that keeps employees happy. It makes sense for the culture and the business. According to ASBN, stats show that unhappiness among employees can cost business owners almost 34% of their total revenue. Based off what we learned from our creatives, here’s our top three tangible suggestions on how to keep your company culture alive and well. 

Get to Know Your People

Take a look at the list of what made our creative employees unhappy– could you list off employees who might share the same sentiment? Do you know who is involved with what ERG or what your teammates are passionate about outside of work? If you are at a large company or work remotely, you might think this is impossible. We’re here to tell you it’s not– no, and you don’t have to spend hours of coffee chats to get to know your people. 
We recently launched NTRNL, an employee listening and retention platform. Our highly personalized profiles allow you to see the depth of interests and expertise within your existing workforce. It gives you a birds-eye view on what makes your people actual people and give them the opportunities they care most about. That way, you can place people on projects they care about, boost career growth, and make better connections throughout the organization.

Respect Work-Life Balance

More and more, Gen Z are “expecting” work-life balance. After the pandemic, millennials started taking after their lead and starting to put their foot down, too. As these generations dominate the workforce, it would bode well to create environments that foster balance. 

Creating balance is a conscious effort that starts from the top down. Cultivate an environment where people can openly talk about their interests and activities outside of work. Encourage employees to take breaks and disconnect from work when they're off the clock, especially on the weekends. Offer flexible schedules, especially for those who have families or active health issues. 

Making a point to internalize and implement this culture shows that you trust and value your employees, which can lead to higher levels of engagement and loyalty. Don’t underestimate the impact this can have on productivity, creativity, and profitability.

Provide Good Medical/Wellness Benefits

Providing good medical and wellness benefits sends a very important message to your employees: that you care about their well-being and are invested in their long-term health. This can range from offering comprehensive health insurance coverage, providing gym memberships, on-site fitness classes, or implmenting a company-wide wellness program.

Good medical and wellness benefits not only attract top talent but also help retain current employees. By investing in their physical and mental well-being, you are showing them that they are valued members of the team and not just cogs in the corporate machine. This can lead to increased job satisfaction and ultimately, higher productivity.

In a Nutshell

Employee satisfaction is the heartbeat of a thriving organization. Our employment happiness survey gave our creatives the chance to reveal their experiences and the urgency to focus on employee retention. Understanding and measuring employee satisfaction is the key to successful business. Prioritize your people to pave the way for a brighter future together.