Most, or 90%, of employees in India say that they would stay at their company longer if they could benefit more from learning and development opportunities, according to the latest Microsoft 2022 Work Trend Index Pulse Report.

The findings also showed that 60% of employees in India say there are not enough growth opportunities in their company to stay long term.

Currently, 66% of employees in India say the best way to develop their skills is to change companies. However, 84% of Gen Z and Millennial employees say they would stay longer at their company if it was easier to change jobs internally.

Microsoft’s report also found that 93% of leaders in India say getting employees back to the office in-person is a concern. Microsoft found that workers are most likely to come in for each other and interact with their co-workers than any other reason. The majority, or 80%, of employees in India say they need a better reason to go into the office besides company expectations, but they would be motivated to go for other reasons.

The data showed 91% of employees in India would be motivated by the promise of socialising with co-workers and 92% by the prospect of rebuilding team bonds.

“The data underscores we have a deep human need to connect with the people we associate with, and that spending time together can help us build stronger relationships, which are key to doing our best work,” Microsoft stated.

Meanwhile, 93% of employees in India report they are productive at work, but 91% of leaders on the other hand say the shift to hybrid work has made it challenging to have confidence in employees being productive. Microsoft suggests that this ‘hyper focus’ on productivity is impacting health and wellbeing. Nearly half, or 47%, of employees and 58% of leaders in India report that they’re already burnt out at work.

“It’s imperative that leaders need to create clarity and alignment around company goals, eliminate busywork that doesn’t support those goals and listen to their people,” Microsoft stated. “However, the data shows that only 44% of companies rarely, if ever, collect employee feedback. Only 56% of employees in India can confidently say that their company solicits employee feedback at least once a year. This means that just under half of the companies in India hear about their employees’ experiences at work.”

Bhaskar Basu, Country Head, Modern Work, Microsoft India, said, “Thriving employees are what will give organizations a competitive advantage in today’s ever evolving economic environment. To bridge this gap, a new approach is needed that recognizes work is no longer just a place, but an experience that needs to keep employees engaged and connected, no matter where they are working from.”