99 H
uman resources are the big- gest headache for businesses in Macau today. With Sands Cotai
Central scheduled to open later this year, employers are again worrying about a new dearth of labour. The question remains: is pay their
only way to lure and retain talent? Ex- perts tell Macau Business pay is impor- tant during the recruitment stage but that non- nancial incentives matter a lot more in the long run. The recent “What’s Working” global
survey by United States human resources consultancy Mercer polled nearly 30,000 employees in 17 markets between the fourth quarter of 2010 and last year’s sec- ond quarter. The ndings show employee loyalty is declining worldwide. At the same time, non- nancial incentives are increasingly important to ensure employ- ees stay motivated and committed. That said, the ndings highlight
Asia-Paci c as the region where workers value money the most – with Hong Kong being the only place in the world where employees say basic pay is what most mo- tivates them and keeps them engaged in their work. The Mercer survey does not cover
Macau but the latest data indicates atti- tudes are similar to those in Hong Kong. The results of a Statistics and Census Service survey show that more than half of employees that changed jobs in 2008 did so for better pay. The results show that changing jobs increased their medi- an monthly pay packet from MOP6,000 (US$750) to MOP8,000. The Statistics and Census Service has
not repeated the survey since then but an- ecdotal evidence suggests the combination of a growing job market and a small pool of available labour has enabled people to shop around for better employment.
Yearning for a leader According to a case study published in 2008 by Zenon Udani, an academic spe- cialising in human resources manage- ment at
the University of Macau, and
MBA student Au Ieong Un Nam, a major determinant of loyalty is the quality of leadership. Employees are largely in u- enced by the boss and his or her attitude toward them. They are more likely to be motivated and stay with the same com- pany if they have an engaged, concerned and competent leader. “The best motivator remains in the
hands of the direct supervisor, who sees the staff every day, understands his or her
challenges and shows empathy and offers support whenever necessary,” says Bau- douin Neirynck, an assistant professor at the Institute for Tourism Studies and a specialist in hotel operations. Employees across the border seem
to think the same way. The Mercer study found that in the mainland the quality of leadership in an organisation was the most important in uence on employee motivation and engagement at work, al- though basic pay was not far behind. Providing feedback on performance,
giving recognition and praise when de- served, and taking the time to train em- ployees and develop their skills are all part of what a leader must do to establish a good relationship with a subordinate, says Jiji Tu, the managing director of hu- man resources company MSS Recruit- ment and job portal
hello-jobs.com. A leader must also have good communica- tion skills and know the names of his or her employees, their likes and dislikes, their families and so on, she adds. An employee that
feels respected
and nurtured is less likely to leave, even for a job with better pay, says Mr Udani. “Employees quit a boss, not necessarily a company.”
Three ages Akin to quality of leadership is the qual- ity of colleagues. Working in a good en- vironment and making friendships in the workplace increase attachment to a com- pany, experts say. These non- nancial incentives can
come into play even in the recruitment process, when a job candidate is given an idea of the corporate culture. But they can work properly only once an employee has accepted a position and is a member of a team. Until that happens, the rst things a job is judged on are the remuneration and the company’s reputation in the market- place, say Ms Tu and Mr Neirynck. “Most employers in Macau are aware
of the value of non-monetary factors that bind people to their jobs but
they are
not exerting as much conscious effort to tap them as means to enhance employee commitment,” says Mr Udani. Ms Tu says that to attract, retain and
motivate employees, companies need to be aware of their expectations. Expecta- tions, she says, typically depend on an employee’s age. Those in their 20s to 30s, or recent
graduates, value learning opportunities and nancial incentives. Those in their 30s to 40s value career advancement
JANUARY 2012
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