'Turnover contagion': The domino effect of one resignation
When key employees resign or are fired, this can set off a chain reaction known as 'turnover contagion'. This may especially be the case during the pandemic and Great Resignation.
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It’s been years since I last quit a job, but I remember it well. When our boss announced abruptly that she was leaving our small non-profit, the meeting room was full of shocked, unhappy expressions. She’d transformed the organisation into a more efficient yet inspiring place to work, and we were all sorry to see her go.

Soon after the arrival of her successor – who had a very different style – I resigned as well. My closest colleague followed suit a week later. Another colleague left as soon as she had another job lined up. This meant that nearly half the employees had left in the span of a few months.

This type of mass departure – which management experts dub ‘turnover contagion’ – is all too common. It can involve multiple employees independently reacting to the same change in personnel in policy (like the fashion subscription company that lost one-third of its stylists after scrapping its flexible-work policy). But there’s also a powerful psychological effect of seeing your peers leave, which can motivate you to start wondering if the grass is greener on their side.

The strength of turnover contagion depends on which employees leave, and the kind of circumstances they leave under. So, especially in today’s uncertain labour market, good managers should be strengthening employee retention and recruitment, to avoid being left captaining a ship without a crew.