LinkedIn has revealed four trends reshaping how companies hire and retain staff in 2020 after surveying over 7,000 hiring professionals across 35 countries.
How to retain staff is a common concern for small magazine publishing companies. Editorial staff are often lost to higher paying corporate communications roles, the threat of top sales staff being poached is real, and those in data and analytics roles may find juicier roles elsewhere.
So how do you provide a company culture that employees want to be part of for the long haul?
LinkedIn said that tapping into the four trends found in its 10th annual Global Talent Trends report will help to attract and retain staff.
1. Companies now work for employees
LinkedIn found that companies are prioritising employees’ needs rather than asking employees to prioritise the needs of the company. It found that empathy is the “superpower that will help companies find the most value amid changing expectations from employees in an increasingly tight labour market”.
The focus on creating a positive ‘employee experience’ for staff aims to improve “everything an employee observes, feels and interacts with as part of their company”. This means actively listening to employee feedback, taking the time to understand employee needs, investing in staff, collaborating to achieve goals, and facilitating company change.
Nearly all (96 per cent) of the hiring staff surveyed said that creating a good experience for their employees is becoming more important, not only for retention but for the company bottom line.
Despite this, only 52 per cent of hiring staff said that their company provides a positive experience for employees.
2. Upskilling in people analytics is crucial
The ability to analyse data is a skill that is increasingly being seen as a must-have for HR professionals. Employee data can be used to understand and HR and hiring processes such as tracking hiring performance, workforce planning, and evaluating recruiting channels.
Whereas some larger companies have been measuring ‘people analytics’ for years, most companies haven’t had access to analytic systems or skills. However, nearly three quarters (73 per cent) of those surveyed said that embracing people analytics will be a major priority for their company over the next five years.
“Data can tell a story and while its power was previously accessible to only the largest companies, it has recently become more democratised, understandable and available,” LinkedIn said.
3. Internal hiring growing in popularity
LinkedIn’s report found that internal hiring has increased by 10 per cent since 2015, and 73 per cent of HR professionals say that internal recruiting is increasingly important to their company.
“Better retention may be why: employees at companies with high internal hiring stay 41 per cent longer compared to those with low internal hiring,” the platform said.
Those surveyed also said that a successful internal hire also increases new hire productivity, accelerates the hire process.
The report found that the top barrier to internal hiring was managers who didn’t want their talented staff to move away from their tema or into different roles. LinkedIn said that this mindset requires not only a change in company policies, but a change in company culture.
4. Dealing with a multi-generational workforce
Many companies are looking to embrace age diversity in the workforce, with staff choosing to retire later and the arrival of Gen Z into the workforce.
LinkedIn said that the majorigy of HR professionals (89 per cent) said that a multigenerational workforce makes a company more successful, and 56 per cent have recently updated policies to appeal to all ages.
“When it comes to differences across generations, we found subtle differences in what motivates employees, makes them leave, and retention trends. For example, Baby Boomers tend to stay 18 per cent longer than the average employee (almost 2x longer than Millennials),” said LinkedIn.
The report explained that, in aggregate, each generation has different strengths and behaviours:
- Gen Z are the most likely to value training opportunities;
- Millennials are the most likely to have data analytics skills; and,
- Gen X employees tend to stay at companies longer than members of any other generation.
However, it cautions that these differences exist in aggregate. Every employee has individual desires, skills and workstyles.
To access the full LinkedIn report, click here.
