Now more than ever businesses are faced with a major challenge of sustaining their skilled and valued employees.
In February this year, Australia recorded 423 000 job vacancies for the month, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) which was 7% higher than in November 2021.
With these figures, employers need to be aware that their employees are now in the best position to look outside of their workplace and see what is being offered in similar industry related fields.
In short, it is not the time for employers to rest on their laurels by doing things the way that they worked in the past.
The workforce has never seen so much change in a short time and it is in the best interests of CEOs to keep this in mind when focussing on building a strong and sustainable employee base for the future.
But the question is, how do employers address this new reality?
There are many aspects of employment that people are looking for when deciding whether or not to jump ship. Here are some of them:
Competitive Salary
Without question, the first is obviously remuneration. Pay rates certainly are not the key reason for seeking a job change, but when employees hear of others in similar industries are being paid significantly more, there is no doubt that it can make an employee feel undervalued and undermined. So in short, being competitive with salary offers is a must.
Career Development
Secondly, there is the need to make it visible to employees that there are inbuilt opportunities for clear progression. As life-long learners and high achievers, few employees will be satisfied if pigeonholed into a job that doesn’t allow for movement and career progression.
Work Flexibility
Finally, the conditions. Technology has allowed us to operate very successfully in a flexible work environment that can involve a shared time with working from the home office. This requires a great deal of employer trust that their workforce will continue to work hard when not being closely monitored. But let’s face it – bosses know who is hard-working and who isn’t, even if you turn up at the office desk five days a week. I honestly think employees will value the trust allowed to them and give back to the company for the privilege of flexibility.
So a note to all bosses when it comes to retaining your top employees: Retraining, recruiting, and re-hiring is expensive. Value your high-performing staff in the short term and reap the benefits for your company in the long term.
BEN CROFT
Consultant
Read more about employee retention and employee experience in our previous blogs: