Leadership + Management | By Tom Murphy,

It’s Not Your Imagination. Recruiting and Retaining Talent is Hard.

There is evidence mounting that when it comes to talent, it’s a seller’s market. If you’ve got it, you’re in high demand. In other words, the power within the hiring process is shifting from employer to employee.

In this new reality, job seekers are increasingly going to be able to leverage their experience and choose from the opportunities open to them. The human resources talent acquisition game is changing, and employers are going to have to work harder than ever to find and hire great people.

Why is this happening?

Not only is unemployment low, but an entire workplace cohort is rapidly leaving the workforce.

It’s been estimated that as many as 10,000 baby boomers reach retirement age every day. As these tenured employees exit the workforce, employers are faced with a mad scramble to replace all of that experience, talent, and labor. Companies will need to compete for the best talent in ways they may have never experienced before.

According to a survey by Glassdoor, it appears we may be seeing signs of this already.

  • More than half (53%) of American employees (including those self-employed) believe if they lost their job they would be likely to find a new job matched to their experience and current compensation levels in the next six months
  • Nearly half (46%) of U.S. employees expect a pay raise in the next 12 months
  • Only 14% of respondents expressed fears about potential layoffs, reflecting a high level of employee confidence

Meanwhile, a Jobvite study provides some even more intriguing job search facts.

  • 45% of workers will jump ship for a new job— even if they are happy in their current position
  • The technology sector has the highest short-term turnover, but no industry is safe
  • 50% of employed job seekers see their current positions as temporary
  • Money is still the number one factor in the decision to leave or accept a position
  • Employed job seekers fessed up to searching for new positions during their commute (38%), on the job (30%) and even in the bathroom (18%)

If you’re an HR manager who hates turnover, this isn’t what you wanted to hear.

What can employers do?

You can choose not to trust the data, or to think your organization is exempt, but those could be some very costly mistakes.

You could also work become an employer of choice, putting yourself in a the best possible position to handle this new job search reality.

Look around your company and ask yourself:

  • Does your staff stay consistent or are there new faces every week?
  • Are people excited to come to work each day?
  • Are they given the tools they need to be successful?
  • Do they feel like part of a team? Are they aligned with the company mission and beliefs?
  • Do your employees refer great candidates in or are they asking friends about their employers?

These things can tell you a lot about how attractive you are to potential new hires, and those who are currently on staff.

Don’t take your employees for granted, and don’t let their silence fool you into thinking they are satisfied. Even if they aren’t actively out looking, someone with a more attractive culture, value proposition, or opportunity just might find them and snap them up.



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