Addressing the Great Resignation: The Crucial Role of Emotional Intelligence in Enhancing Perceived Employability, Work Engagement, and Job Satisfaction Among Young Professionals

Background: Employee resignation presents a formidable challenge to contemporary organizations, with an increasing number of workers choosing to leave their jobs in search of more engaging and satisfying conditions. This phenomenon, widely recognized as the "Great Resignation," has increased dramatically in the post-pandemic period. There has been an increasingly evident change in attitude and engagement toward work, particularly among young professionals, who often choose to leave their jobs in search of value coherence and selffulfilment (Kuzioret al., 2022). This problem needs to be addressed by organizations to retain young talent and reduce the costs associated with high turnover rates. Drawing on existing literature, we posit that Emotional Intelligence (EI) is a vital personal resource, enhancing individuals’ ability to manage their social working contexts and fostering greater work engagement (Akthar et al., 2015; Bakker and Demerouti, 2023, Kossyva et al., 2023). We argue that EI plays a pivotal role in assisting new graduates as they navigate the social contexts of their professional lives, in bolstering their perceived employability (PE) (Pirsoul et al., 2023). Recognized as a key personal resource, PE has the potential to help workers grow in their organization and be supported in doing so. Consequently, an improved sense of PE could, in turn, promote work engagement (WE) and job satisfaction (JS) among newly graduated workers. Method: Building on these foundations, this research aims to examine the role of personal resources (i.e., EI and PE) in fostering WE and JS among young professionals. To achieve this 752 goal, we conducted a cross-sectional survey involving 602 Italian newly graduates (women= 73.4%; age: M= 26,79) who participated in an online questionnaire. The collected data underwent Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) analysis using Lavaan R Studio and the bootstrap method to test mediation analyses. Results: Our models fit the data well (χ2(1113) = 2414.934, CFI = .90, RMSEA [90% CI] = 0.047 [0.044; 0.049], SRMR = 0.070). Results support that EI is an important protective factor in directly increasing PE (β = 0.534, SE= .203; p < .001; CI 95% [0.379; 0.689]). PE, in addition, is a total mediator (Ind1= 0.197, SE= 0.219; p < .01; CI 95% [0.077; 0.318]) in the relationship between EI and WE. Finally, PE and WE are serial mediators (ind2= 0.160, SE= 0.171; p < .01; CI 95% [0.061; 0.259]) in the relationship between EI and JS. High levels of EI are not enough to be satisfied with the job. Nevertheless, high EI provides the abilities and selfregulatory resources to cope with social work context difficulties, increasing PE, which in turn increases WE and, consequently, JS. Conclusion: The findings of this study show the importance of high EI and PE. Thus, higher education institutions should adopt career guidance activities and work-based learning experiences that can foster and support these two dimensions. Organizations, on the other hand, must prioritize the role of young workers' personal resources by intervening for their development to succeed in the modern workplace.