Keep staff happy for the sake of your bottom line
This article was published in the Irish Examiner on the 3rd of August 2007 by Joe Dermody.
TECHNOLOGY and finance workers have plenty to smile about, as employers will spend the next two years serving up a smorgasbord of enticements to recruit and retain top performers.
Over 93% of senior managers in the Irish IT and finance sectors say it is more difficult to find high-performing candidates than it was two years ago.
The vast majority know it is only going to get harder, and most are hoping bigger salaries will bridge the gap between their needs and the soaring expectations of their best staff.
“Very few companies have a talent management programme in place,” notes Stephen Kennedy, MD of Dublin-based recruitment firm Talent Partners. “Most senior managers think retaining their top performers is all about money, but it is also about challenges and opportunities. You must communicate to people where you see them in two to three years time.
“People don’t always get the credit for their creative work, which they sometimes feel is denied them by a senior manager. People want autonomy, challenges and the plaudits when they do good work. Employers give far more attention to people during the recruitment process than they ever give them subsequently. Once they’re in the door, they’re left to get on with it.
In fact, most companies have no clear policy on how to retain their best performers, according to a survey of 53 leading Irish financial and IT companies, insurers, banks, building societies. There are some remarkable findings in the Market Dynamics survey, commissioned by Talent Partners and MRI Network.
For example, the survey found more top performers were seeking opportunities and challenges than a better rewards package. Despite this, only 12% of employers had any plans to retain their star staff through this means. The vast majority cited higher salaries, bonus structures and a fast-track to promotion as their main retention tools.
Employers in the IT sector have certainly been throwing money at their retention problems of late. The latest surveys by online job agency RecruitIreland.com shows chief technical officers are earning up to €140,000, programme managers up to €100,000, while certified security specialists are on up to €90,000 per annum.
More companies are having to look outside their traditional incremental salary scales and fixed bonus schemes. More and more IT and financial companies admit they’ve had to secretly or even openly throw away the rule book to hold onto their stars. This is particularly true in the area of sales.
“Companies need to stop the egalitarian approach and realise we have to treat high performers differently,” said one HR manager in an ICT company.
The cost of being equitable can be huge. The average figure quoted by companies surveyed by Talent Partners was €237,000, though some estimated the real cost of losing top talent at €1 million or more. This includes the cost of lost production, recruitment in hiring a replacement, reduced staff morale, and the time for a new employee to get up to speed.
The lack of available replacements in Ireland is aggravating the problem in Ireland. Despite this, the survey found only 3% of employers constantly recruit abroad.
“Nearly half of the ICT companies surveyed say they only look in Ireland for new talent,” said Stephen Kennedy. “And of all the companies we surveyed, only 17% have a policy in place for attracting and retaining high performers. Overall, more than half said they had lost a top performer in the last year. This figure rose to 70% in the finance sector. And yet they have no policy to retain these people.
“Liverpool reached the Champions League final last season, but they still brought in six new players this year. In business, when a top performer leaves, several others follow. If Donal Óg were to go today, three or four others would go with him. The departure of a top performer demoralises other staff. Even worse, they often take your clients with them. It’s hard to put a figure on the loss of customers and intellectual capital.”
If employers can find a way to retain top performers, they’re best advised to do so. This is definitely one case where prevention is lot better than trying to find a cure.
>> Return to News & Publications Home
|
