How to Attract and Keep Top Talent

The workforce has changed, and it continues to change. The way we lead, hire, engage, and retain people must evolve alongside it. We’re not just attracting a polished resume; we’re attracting human beings who prioritize fulfillment, flexibility, fairness, and impact. If you want top talent knocking down your doors, your culture can’t just look good on paper. It must be good, from the inside out.

Culture Isn’t a Perk, It’s the Product

Gone are the days when companies could get away with not taking an interest in what matters to their people. Titles and salaries used to be the golden ticket. Not anymore. Today’s workforce, especially younger generations, is not content to stay in environments where they’re just a number. They want to belong. They want transparency. They want purpose.

It’s rare to find a company that doesn’t need some level of improvement. Sure, there are those exceptional organizations that consistently attract and retain top talent, boast enviable retention rates, and maintain high performance across the board. These aren’t just fun places to work; they’re deeply respected. Why? Because they don’t just say they value their people, they show it through daily action, structure, and decision-making.

And top talent? They notice.

They’re watching how your company treats its employees, responds to failure, and supports inclusion. They care about whether your values are lived out or left to collect dust on a wall.

Toxic Cultures Don’t Hide, They Leak

Today’s professionals are no longer willing to tolerate toxic work environments. They’ve learned that they can (and should) walk away from workplaces that treat people as disposable. Organizations that attempt to mask dysfunction with inflated compensation, job titles, or flashy perks will struggle to retain engaged employees. They may lure people in, but they won’t keep them.

And here’s what the data tells us:

A 2022 study by MIT Sloan found that toxic workplace culture is 10.4 times more powerful than compensation in predicting employee turnover.

According to Gallup’s 2023 State of the Global Workplace report, only 23% of employees worldwide are engaged. That means over three-quarters are checked out or actively disengaged.

The Other Side of the Story

But here’s the other side of the story. One we don’t talk about enough:

We’re not just seeing employees walking away from toxic environments. We’re also seeing a growing intolerance from some employers and leaders who label modern workforce expectations as “entitled,” “soft,” or “unrealistic.”

But the ask isn’t radical. Imagine the audacity of today’s workforce calling for respect, trust, equity, inclusion, flexibility, and a voice! These aren’t radical demands, folks! They are foundational to engagement, innovation, and long-term performance.

When leaders push back against those values, or worse, mock them, they send a clear message: We aren’t interested in you; we are only interested in what you can do for us.

Sure, OK… that might get short-term results. However, it won’t build high-performing teams, and it certainly won’t foster loyalty.

“Fear-based leadership works, but it’s temporary. It creates compliance, not commitment. And the cost is trust, creativity, and long-term performance.”

And the cost doesn't end there. It shows up in:

• High turnover and constant retraining
• Low psychological safety and idea suppression
• Burnout that spreads like wildfire
• Missed opportunities for innovation and growth
• Top talent walking out the door, quietly and without notice

So, let’s not pretend this isn’t happening. I’ve heard the stories over the years, the ones that never make it into glossy HR reports:

• “I don’t pay you to think.”
• “Any dumb monkey can do this job.”
• “You’re not here to solve the problem, just do what you’re told.”

Leaders who double down on control instead of connection are short-sighted. They’re not reading the room. If they were, they would know that they diminish their influence by treating people like workhorses. You see, today’s professionals aren’t asking for more than what they deserve; they’re asking for workplaces that treat them like whole humans.

If you’re uncomfortable with that, you’re managing for control, not leading for influence.

Because people don’t leave jobs. They leave bosses’ and cultures.

And cultures are shaped by how those in leadership positions show up every single day.

Leaders who aren’t leading are more expensive than poor performers.

When companies promote the wrong people or refuse to confront internal politics and performance issues, it sends a clear message: culture doesn’t matter here. This can lead to alarming rates of turnover and the promotion-then-purge cycle that leaves your people questioning everything.

High turnover is expensive. A bad hire can cost up to 30% of that person’s first-year salary; add in training costs, disruption, morale hits, and potential client impact, and you’ll see why getting it right the first time matters.

Over-promoting without support or operating from outdated command-and-control mindsets only adds fuel to the fire. What you end up with is misalignment, mediocrity, and a revolving door.

Your People Are Your Advantage; If You Let Them Be

If your company is still hanging on to the belief that “people should be grateful just to have a job,” it’s time to catch up. The future of business lies in the hearts, minds, and loyalty of your people. When you foster a culture that supports, develops, and challenges them to grow, they will push your best ideas over the finish line.

Here’s what the modern workforce values:

• Psychological safety over posturing.
• Transparency over performance.
• Shared ownership over top-down control.
• Work-life integration over a rigid structure.
• Meaningful connection over transactional relationships.

If you’re not listening to your employees, someone else will. If you’re not evolving with your people, your competitors are.

Intentional Culture Wins. Every Time

Want to stand out? Want your best employees to stay and your future leaders to find you? Stop micromanaging. Stop performing culture on social media and start creating it behind closed doors. Get real about feedback. Get serious about trust.

The most dangerous sentence in business? “This is the way we’ve always done it.”

In today’s business landscape, your biggest risk isn’t a weak quarter: it’s a weak culture.

Questions worth asking:

• Do your team members feel safe bringing up new ideas, or are they afraid to speak up?
• Are you learning from failure, or punishing it?
• Are you clinging to control, or making space for innovation?

If you’re unsure how to shift, start here: Invite your people to the table. Ask them what matters. Align your values with your actions. Then commit to becoming a company that truly lives what it says.

Because when you do that? Top talent will find you.