How Spotify Reduced Employee Turnover Through its Work Policy

How Spotify Reduced Employee Turnover Through its Work Policy

Unless you're living under a rock, you've heard about the "Great Resignation" or the "Great Reset". The pandemic is largely responsible for one of the major shifts in how employees see "work places". In the midst of the pandemic, Spotify took a bold step, announcing a  new work model called “Work From Anywhere. (WFA)”, albeit ring-fenced with certain criteria's. The policy lets employees determine:

1. How often they work from the office

2. Where they work, as long as the company has an operation there.

3. Recalibrated salary bands adjusted based on country instead of region.

With these minor but significant tweaks, Spotify has now expanded beyond New York and California and is now registered in 42 U.S. states. In Europe, the platform has increased its presence outside its Stockholm headquarters to Germany, Spain, and the Netherlands.

Beyond the geographical expansion, Spotify has seen very quantifiable benefits.

1. Around 6% of employees moved after the policy’s instatement.

2. Attrition at the company was 15% lower in the second quarter of 2022 compared to the same quarter in 2019.

3. Increased and Diverse representation in its employee base.

According to a Spotify blog titled "The Reality of Working from Anywhere", published on March 29th 2022, Spotify shares the intended ambitions of policy and shared a few outcomes (excerpt below):

Other firms, who are in talent bind, can take some of the learning from Spotify and see how small, yet meaningful changes, can help them both retain and onboard new talent.