As a new year approaches, many employees take the time over Christmas to reflect on their career direction. Harmonics has found January to be the busiest time to receive calls from top talent seeking private career coaching advice in search of a fresh start in a new work environment. However, from an organisations perspective, this potential talent exodus can seriously impact business growth projections.
John Fitzgerald, MD of the Harmonics Group, has been working with several organisations to avoid the brain-drain. “A company wanting to retain top talent shouldn’t be thinking purely extrinsic rewards like a promotion or salary increase. This is not always possible today as company structures become flatter and budgets may be constrained. Organisations need to be more proactive and partner with their talent and work with them to create career growth opportunities that provide a win-win.”
With the economy improving, Ireland’s workforce has become more transient forcing companies to review their current retention strategies. Harmonics is working with companies to implement effective career management programmes which, when aligned to the business strategy, ensures they are more prepared for this changing environment where top talent is now hot property.
“We have found Organisations are commonly forced into making counter offers to retain their key staff. When you are counter offering you are purely throwing money at the problem. As one HR Director described it to me, it’s like playing in goal against Barcelona with wave after wave of attacks coming for his best people. If recruiters are out there under pressure to hire top talent, they will find your best people and keep coming back again and again with new and enticing offers.” he continued.
“Businesses must respond to the new world of work, rethink their career and reward frameworks and start proactively partnering with their people. You may not retain all of your talent, but isn’t it better to have proactive realistic career conversations rather than reactive rushed counter offer chats that just kicks the can down the road and postpones the inevitable departure” concluded John Fitzgerald.
