The Challenge

A 500-employee professional services firm faced 18% annual turnover despite competitive pay and a hybrid policy, but leaders lacked clarity on whether the issues were cultural, spatial, or related to hybrid work patterns.

The organization needed a data-driven view of how employees experience the workplace and how those experiences affect their likelihood of staying. They used Dynamics Solution and achieved a 65% response rate - strong enough to reliably reflect overall patterns.

What We Assessed

The assessment examined workplace experience across five evidence-based pillars that together shape retention:

Sentiment
How employees feel about their work – energy, inclusion, pride, and overall emotional climate.
Workspace Experience
How effectively the space enables focus, collaboration, and wellbeing.
Cultural Alignment
Alignment of lived experience with the organization's cultural drivers: Autonomy, Results, Innovation, Interpersonal.
Schedule Experience
Fit between employees' current hybrid rhythm and their preferred one, including predictability and team coordination.
Activity Fit
Whether office and remote setups support employees' activities.

The Retention Score (0-100%) reflects the combined effect of these pillars.

Key Findings

Retention Score: 62% (Moderate Risk)

Distribution:

15% Moderately Low / Low / Very Low.
30% Average.
55% Moderately High / High / Very High.

Top Insights

Cultural Misalignment Around Autonomy

Employees felt limited control over how and when they work. Workspace design and hybrid patterns did not fully support autonomy.
Workspace Experience Issues

Friction related to environmental comfort, privacy, noise, and workpoint usability negatively affected effectiveness and sentiment.
Inconsistent Hybrid Rhythms

Departments preferred different office days (mid-week vs end-week), creating unpredictable collaboration and coordination fatigue.
Activity Fit Challenges

Individual spaces lacked variety and size; meeting rooms didn't fit team needs or support hybrid work.
Newcomers Felt Less Involved

Employees with <1 year tenure showed significantly lower involvement, indicating early integration issues.

Opportunities To Improve Retention

Workspace

Expand the variety and suitability of individual workpoints.
Improve meeting rooms sizing and equipment for hybrid collaboration.
Strengthen environmental comfort and consistency.

Culture

Boost autonomy with clearer expectations and flexibility.
Improve connection through predictable collaboration rhythms.
Support newcomers with more structured integration practices.

Hybrid Rhythm

Align departmental expectations on office days.
Increase the predictability of team presence.

Note: Even a modest 3% improvement in retention - reducing turnover from 18% to 15% - results in approximately $2M in savings, based on the simple calculation: 15 fewer leavers x $135,000 replacement cost per employee = $2,025,000, excluding any productivity-related gains.

Are Our Office And Hybrid Policies Supporting Talent Retention?

Are Our Office And Hybrid Policies Supporting Talent Retention?