Pulse January 2023 | Page 51

Twenty years ago ,“ disruptive innovation ” and “ disruptive technology ” arose alongside disruptive new companies whose leaders espoused disruptive business ideologies . Transformational technology has been a regular and cyclical part of the post-industrial era , of course , with breakthroughs shaping each generation for the past quarter-millennium . But the rate of technological change in the past 20 or 30 years is extraordinary . Walking into a spa today , with its futuristic treatment technologies and advanced wellness products , is a different experience than it was in previous generations .

“ Market disruption ” was the outlier a few years later as the world economy adjusted to turbulence and disorder . Again , the spa industry adjusted to the new realities , making changes to stay relevant and solvent .

Google Trends tells us our current collective concern is workplace disruption . That term — along with several others like the Great Resignation ,“ quiet quitting ,” the Reshuffle and the Big Quit — is part of the post-pandemic zeitgeist , with search volume mirroring the discussion nearly every company ’ s leadership has engaged in to combat talent shortages and disaffected workers .

WORKPLACE DISRUPTION : Employees have new expectations It is impossible to overlook the trend of workplace disruption in the spa industry .

ISPA ’ s Snapshot Survey ¹ in the third quarter last year reported 69 percent of spas and 61 percent of resource partners hired new staff in Fall 2022 .

Gallup ’ s State of the Global Workplace 2022 report ² illustrates several important shifts in workers ’ expectations for their jobsites , focusing on employee engagement . The report identifies these changes are recent : “ Before the pandemic , engagement and wellbeing were rising globally for nearly a decade — but now , they ’ re stagnant .”

JANUARY 2023 ⁿ PULSE 49