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Talent retention will be the key employment challenge in 2016


Confidence in growth is high and firmly rooted in the UK businessworld, but attracting and retaining talent will stay top of boardroom agendas in 2016 said recruitment specialists Hays, as it launched its UK Salary and Recruiting Trends annual survey1 in Reading, writes John Burbedge


The lack of skilled recruits in several sectors, will leave employers facing a difficult recruitment dilemma this year.


While 74% of companies were aiming to hire more staff in order to meet business growth objectives, nearly 60% of existing employees anticipated moving jobs within the year, and 75% within two years, according to the Hays results.


Adding the right talented recruits to their teams while keeping their current workforce happy and engaged would be the key plate- spinning task for senior management during 2016.


With a lack of skilled and suitable recruits coming into sector job pools, and increased recruitment activity being ramped up by ambitious companies, competition for talent was intensifying, explained Hays.


While most companies looking to recruit (84%) aim to hire on a permanent basis, increased levels of temporary employment were expected to meet resourcing demand. To counter the skills gap, most companies were focusing on increased internal training and development, apprentice recruitment or had boosted their recruitment, marketing and corporate profile budgets.


In some skill-short sectors, competition was so severe that potential recruitment candidates are already receiving multiple job offers and counter-offers to stay from their current employers. This was prevalent in sectors such as IT and construction, but it was increasingly becoming the norm elsewhere, said Hays director Sarah Stevenson, presenting the survey results at Green Park, Reading.


“In my recruitment career, I have never seen as many counter-offers happening, even during a recruit’s three months notice period.”


“Employee confidence and mobility is high across all sectors, so we can expect a lot of movement in a very short space of time. Given the current skill shortages, employers will need to think very carefully about both their recruitment and retention strategies,” stated Stevenson.


www.businessmag.co.uk Simon Winfield (centre), regional MD of Hays, with Sarah Stevenson and Eddie Curzon


The top three challenges to recruitment in 2016, according to Hays, will be:


• Shortage of suitable applicants (79%) • Competition from other employers (45%) • Unrealistic salary requirements (41%).


Unsurprisingly in this competitive arena, UK salaries rose 2.3% on average last year (3.3% in the south-east), and are set to continue rising with two-thirds of employers planning to increase pay levels in 2016 – doubly supporting their talent attraction and retention objectives. Salary growth was highest in the construction sector.


It wasn’t just higher salaries that motivated people to leave, said Stevenson. Other factors were important, and the lack of career development opportunity was one key reason – particularly for those in the Generation Y and Z age-groups born after 1983.


Work-life balance and job security were the most important factors for those born prior to 1983; while, in order of preference, career development (a resounding 42%), work-life balance, job security, location and benefits package were the Generation Y and Z top five attractions.


Equally, it appears that many employers need to review the content of their employment benefits packages. “Our survey found that there is a mismatch between what employers think their employees want, and what employees really want.”


Cycle-to-work schemes, season tickets, childcare vouchers, and life insurance were among many benefits viewed less importantly by employees than their employers did.


Survey respondents placed flexible working (62%) and 25-day-plus annual leave (57%) at their top of their favoured benefits; yet only 53% and 45% respectively of employers offered these.


The importance of satisfying employee requirements has been emphasised by the fundamental shift in recruitment dynamics towards a candidate-led market in recent years. Social media networks, online self-marketing and CV placement through jobsites have helped make the employable candidate ‘king’ by weakening employer influence over the recruitment process while assisting employee awareness of alternative opportunities.


“Employers who can offer competitive remuneration packages, clear career progression paths and a range of flexible benefit options will be best placed to source the key skills they will need to maximise growth,” says Hays UK & Ireland MD Nigel Heap in the annual report.


Recruitment within its current and future economic context was covered by Eddie Curzon of the CBI in his presentation. The UK was outperforming most countries bar China and India he highlighted, although companies were still cautious about recruitment and investment growth plans, faced with financial volatility, fluctuating global economies and the upcoming UK referendum on EU-membership.


Curzon mentioned that around 80% of CBI members were in favour of staying in the EU, subject to suitable membership reform being gained by David Cameron.


Employment rates were now improving towards pre-recession levels, but apprenticeships levy and national living wage cost burdens remained concerns to many businesses, he added.


Details: Hays in Reading 0118-9070321 Survey: www.hays.co.uk/salary-guide


1 Nationwide more than 20,000 employers and employees were surveyed.


THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – THAMES VALLEY – FEBRUARY 2016


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