Talent Retention is an Ongoing Issue for Employers

ISR today announced the findings of an employee engagement study revealing that companies throughout the Asia-Pacific region have substantial challenges to retaining their most talented employees.

Five of the largest Asia-Pacific economies (Australia, China, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand) were included in the study, which involved more than 3,000 employees that were classified as ëtop talentí from 120 companies across a broad spectrum of industries and job classifications. Top employees from each country were asked to complete a short online survey to measure their perceptions on issues such as Strategy and Direction, Leadership, Development, Reputation and Brand, Job Satisfaction and Security and Engagement.

Employers identified their top talent as the most productive and profitable employees in their organizations, and survey respondents included managers, supervisors and team members across professional, technical and administrative functions, with a majority of the survey respondents between 24-44 years of age.

The study revealed that the region is full of ëtalent-at-riskí staff, with Malaysia serving as home to the largest proportion of employees that define themselves as either disillusioned or actively disengaged, with 47 percent of the countryís most talented staff indicating they are mere steps away from considering leaving their companies. Forty percent of the Singaporean talent sample was found to be either disillusioned or actively disengaged, whereas this group accounted for approximately 30 percent of talented staff in Australia, China and Thailand.

ìThe majority of ëtalent-at-riskí staff in the Asia-Pacific region reported that they would leave as soon as they have an acceptable new job offer,î said Patrick Kulesa, global research director for ISR. ìThis means that the risk to current employers is immediate and must be addressed.î

ISR also found that 88 percent of talent-at-risk staff in China indicated they would leave their current position as soon as they found an acceptable new job offer, while 92 percent of Australiaís talent-at-risk and 95 percent of Singaporeís talent-at-risk employees affirmed the same. These findings reflect the massive economic growth that the region has experienced in the past few years. Employees generally and top talent particularly have the freedom to choose their employer and expect to work for employers that will nurture their talent and allow them to share in the economic success.

In its 2006 Economic Policy Report, issued in November 2006, the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) predicts that labor migration issues in four of the countries cited in the ISR study - China, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand - will drive a host of education, training and labor reforms and impinge on these economies in 2007. These findings further illustrate the importance of proactive talent retention strategies for businesses in the region.

KEY FACTORS RESPONSIBLE FOR RETENTION ISSUES
ISR determined a number of key factors that drive Asia-Pacificís most talented employees to leave their current employers, and all are related to a companyís management style. ëTalent-at-riskí employees were more likely to describe the management style in their company as reactive, rather than proactive; risk avoidant as opposed to open to calculated risk; directive instead of participative; and short-term not long-term orientated.

In fact, ISR research shows that top talent enjoy being part of organizations that are focused on long-term success and offer opportunities to achieve long-term targets. ISR also found that high performing employees prefer working for companies that have formal succession planning and talent management programs.

ìCompanies that successfully engage their talent base ensure that career development plans meet the employeesí personal needs and encourage employees to continually develop their skills and abilities,î said Hamish Deery, Regional Executive Director of ISR Asia Pacific and the Middle East. ìWhile it has been widely demonstrated in employee surveys that cultural issues influence the key drivers of employee engagement, our research on this study reveals that the key drivers of talent engagement are similar across the Asia-Pacific region: career development and training.î