How to retain your high performers in 2022 and beyond
Hiring challenges are impacting businesses Australia-wide, regardless of size or industry, finding suitably qualified employees is a tough gig. Seek released stats last month indicating that for the first time since they launched in 1997 they are seeing far more jobs being advertised than there are candidates.
Statistics from last quarter indicate that 50% of Australian businesses are employing right now. According to the PWC “What Workers Want” report Australian workers will soon be on the move in much larger numbers than we’ve seen in recent times: The Great Resignation.
Why is this happening?
Some commentators have said this intent has been created by a sense of restlessness or looking to regain control, after a significant period in lockdown. Sociologists suggest that people have been particularly introspective as a result of the pandemic, which can often lead to job and career changes, and others believe it has been building up in the background for some time, as people have been reluctant to change employers in an unstable market.
It’s likely to be a combination of all those factors – but whatever the cause, here we are and we need to put strategies in place to stop the flow of talent out the gate.
How do we fix this?
If you’ve approached recruitment with the “why should I employ you” mindset it’s time for that to change.
Attracting interest from job seekers requires you to shift your thinking from what you want from candidates (i.e. requirements of the role) to what you have to offer prospective candidates.
The biggest attractors for employees are remunerations and rewards, wellbeing, employee experience and ways of working.
It’s time to invest more in meeting employees' expectations, when you do this it makes it much easier to attract employees. But more than that, they stick around, and the less you have to recruit, train and have staffing issues impact core business operations the more it makes this a no-brainer right?
Get your offer and leadership right and employees will stick around. Not forever, because a job for life no longer exists, but you will manage a stable workforce. And in our current job market, this should be your key priority.
Simone Pickering is the Director of The People & Culture Office, alongside Tiahanna Glasson she supports HR teams and SMEs Australia-wide to take a fresh approach towards their people and culture function.
With 20-plus years in the HR game behind them, Tiahanna & Simone build capability and culture in the workplace to drive the achievement of your operational goals and give you an edge in a talent-led economy.
Wanna learn more about the People & Culture Office (us, too!), click here!