In visiting with clients, one subject continues to come up in conversation - as the economy starts to recover - how will we retain our best talent?
Staring Down Defection
Forty percent of professionals say the ebbing of the recession has made them more inclined to look for a new job—and the younger the worker, the greater the chances they’ll be on the move, according to a new survey.
The survey could alert companies that they need to make efforts to retain their best employees. Although jobs remain scarce, those in high-level positions are the best employees at each business and could find work at other companies with little trouble, said Katie Essman, branch manager of Robert Half International’s Denver Tech Center office.
The staffing company, which is based in Menlo Park, California, had an independent research firm survey more than 1,400 North American professionals.
“It’s a scary number, for sure,” Essman said. “As an employer, you hate to think you could lose 40 percent of your workforce. You never ever want to lose your ‘A’ players to the competition.”
According to the survey, 45 percent of Generation Y professionals—ages 21 to 31—said the recession has influenced them to look for other jobs. The number drops to 40 percent for Gen Xers (32 to 45) and 35 percent for baby boomers (45 to 64).
One big reason so many people seek to move on is that they feel they sacrificed wages and 401(k) contributions to help companies during the leanest of times in 2008 and 2009, and neither category has been restored, Essman said. And while baby boomers view corporate advancement as climbing the ladder at one company, Gen Y workers see it as moving from company to company for higher pay and bigger positions, she said.
Members of all three age groups said working for a stable company and having job security are two of the most important things they seek in a work environment. Those scored much higher than having a short commute or working for a socially responsible company; the latter was a bigger concern when jobs were flush, but it sinks on priority lists during tougher times, Essman said.
Gen Xers are more likely than the other two groups to enhance their skill sets and build tenure with their companies in the aftermath of the recession, according to the survey results. And a greater percentage of baby boomers—54 percent—said they plan to work past the traditional retirement age than the other age groups, the results showed.
Essman advised that with more job opportunities opening up, employers should sit down with their top workers and essentially re-recruit them. Even if pay raises aren’t yet feasible, they should offer them rewards such as praise, opportunities for career development, or schedule flexibility to allow them a greater balance between work and personal lives, she said.
“Get to know your best employees again,” Essman said. “I think we as managers spend most of our time with underperforming employees rather than our top employees.”
However, the baby boomers’ likelihood of staying for more years could limit the number of jobs for which younger employees might compete, whether at their present companies or at others, Essman said.
“Many employees, particularly Gen Y professionals, are biding their time in their current employment situations and plan to make a move when they feel the economy is on firmer footing,” Brett Good, a California-based district president for Robert Half, said in a news release. “Now is the time for employers to take action and outline career paths within their company for strong performers.”
by Ed Sealover Jul 26 2010 Portfolio.com
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