Almost half of Irish staff will move jobs

A RECENT survey conducted by Cork talent management and recruitment consultancy, Fastnet – The Talent Group, revealed that 44% of employees are likely to move jobs in the coming 18 months.  

With over three quarters of employers surveyed stating that retention of staff was critical to their businesses, it is evident that talent management is going to be an important workplace issue in 2017.

Speaking at the launch of the survey, company co-founder and managing partner, Carrigaline native Niamh O’Driscoll, said the survey showed that when it comes to retaining skilled employees, employers need to invest in talent acquisition, pipeline and management. 

‘Of the employers surveyed, 77% said that employee retention was critical to their business, with over half stating that they would expect an employee to stay with their company for 5-6 years. 

‘With 44% of employees expecting to move jobs in the year ahead, employers must understand the importance of attracting, developing and retaining the best talent, and we are seeing that firsthand through our work with clients,’ she said.

The Fastnet survey shows that a clear career development path in a role is very attractive and important to both male and female employees, ranking above better financial remuneration. However, men were far more likely to be motivated by a performance related bonus (34%) compared to women (16%). 

 The survey found that multinationals were ranked as the most attractive workplace in Ireland.  More than double the number of employees would prefer to work for a start-up company rather than work in the public sector and not-for-profit organisations.

Employers and employees also have very different opinions on the use of performance management tools, according to the survey. Almost half the employees surveyed question the effectiveness of the performance tool used by their company, while 83% of companies surveyed believed that performance management tools used currently were effective.

‘This disconnect in performance measurement reveals an important clue for HR professionals. It may signal the need to review current performance tools and look to more agile, coaching-style performance measurement systems,’ said Niamh.

From a gender diversity perspective, the survey revealed that female employees are twice as likely to stay in a role compared to their male counterparts. Flexibility in the workplace is a key motivator for female employees, with more than three quarters ranking flexi-working hours and remote working as the number one factor when considering a new role, compared to only 23% of males.