Career Development key to post-GFC employee retention
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Career Development key to post-GFC employee retention
As the job market recovers and heralds a return to high staff turnover, companies will need to use career development to boost retention and drive productivity, a new white paper argues.
The Right Management paper, Increasing the Strength of Your Workforce, argues that a career development strategy pays double dividends to employers.
"Career development is an effective way to keep employees engaged and productive. However, it also gives the organisation greater clarity about its talent pool: what skills and talent does it have, and where does it need to build on that?" Ms Bridget Beattie, Regional General Manager for Right Management said.
However, Right Management research has found this approach is often underutilised: 75% of companies don’t give their people leaders the tools or skills to support career development.
"Career discussions are often an after-thought – something tacked onto an annual performance review and promptly forgotten. But to really improve engagement and retention, career development needs to be part of an organisation’s fabric and driven by senior leaders. Line managers also need to be given the resources and skills to deliver it," Ms Beattie said.
One of the most important parts of career development is the learning process that individuals go through, according to the white paper.
"Self-assessment is a powerful experience for most people, but traditionally only done in an outplacement program, when the employee is exiting. That’s a missed opportunity for employers, because it’s actually at the heart of career development, and helps employees identify what they’re good at and which roles they’re suited to," Ms Beattie said.
The benefits of self-discovery became apparent to one of Right Management's clients, as retiring employees undergoing outplacement often said, "I wish I'd done this 20 years ago". The company's subsequent career development program has led to a 60% reduction in attrition, and is now one of the company’s top three people initiatives globally.
While retention is one outcome, engagement is equally important, says Ms Beattie.
"It makes sense that being in a role you like and suits your skills is going to make you more engaged and productive. But it doesn't stop there – people need to grow, so career development must continuously challenge and stretch them towards their next role, whether it’s up or across," Ms Beattie said.
For an Australian ASX Top 30 company, career development has led to a remarkable increase in employee engagement. Between 2007 and 2009, overall engagement climbed from 38% to 58%, and even more dramatically in some parts of the business, from 30% to 72%.
"Ultimately, career development ticks all the boxes for making it a top organisational priority: it leads to happier staff who stay longer, work more productively and deliver on the business’s strategy," Ms Beattie said.
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About Right Management
Right Management (www.right.com) is the talent and career management expert within ManpowerGroup, the global leader in employment services. Right Management helps clients win in the changing world of work by designing and executing workforce solutions that align talent strategy with business strategy. Our expertise spans across talent assessment, leadership development, organisational effectiveness, employee engagement and workforce transition. Right Management partners with companies of all sizes. More than 80% of Fortune 500 companies are currently working with us to help them grow talent, reduce costs and accelerate performance.
Right Management is a wholly owned subsidiary of ManpowerGroup., leader in the employment services industry, creating and delivering services that enable its clients to win in the changing world of work.
Media contacts:
Danielle Murdolo, Buchan, 03 9866 4722, 0403 688 980 or dmurdolo@bcg.com.au
Belinda Thomson, Buchan, 02 9237 2800, 0421 193 668 or bthomson@bcg.com.au