As we move further and further into a candidate-led job market, employee retention is becoming a bigger priority. Workers are now job hopping and trying out new roles as they please, so how do you stop your best talent leaving? Well, keeping them happy is a start.
We recently conducted research with IDC that showed 29% of the European line managers and HR professionals surveyed were not proud of their workplace or willing to recommend it to others. Managers and HR staff are meant to wave the flag of their organisation, and represent the corporate values and engagement, but if almost a third (29%) feel this way, the proportion among regular employees must be even higher.
Another finding from our research – and something for companies to note – is that flexible working directly impacts employee engagement. Particularly aspects of flexible working related to technology (namely mobile technologies, flexibility of enterprise systems, IT training) and freedom to work remotely. These areas were shown to significantly impact employee pride and willingness to recommend their employer to others, meaning flexible working practices and systems should be a CEO priority.
The most important flexible working practices in terms of respondent happiness were found to be those related to career flexibility and tool flexibility. Organisations with a high tolerance of internal mobility had much happier respondents than those who did not. Likewise, organisations with flexible IT systems and policies to support remote working, working on mobile devices and personal devices in the workplace had a significantly better happiness score than those without such policies.
It seems trust is a key common denominator here, given that the first five criteria are highly linked to the notion of trust from the company towards the employee.
Although Europe is already well progressed in the adoption of flexible working practices, there is plenty more that can be done. It is not just about employee IT; it’s also about flexible management and trust. Not every worker can work from home – it simply doesn’t work in some industries. However, some barriers to flexible working can be overcome, such as those to do with HR policies, IT limitations or leadership beliefs, and European organisations will need to progress further to become attractive and flexible employers.
So how can we move forward? IDC recommends a number of things. First, European organisation need to realise that employee IT tools – they should concern the CEO. Having the IT to support flexible working is now critical for employee loyalty and pride.
Second, the fact that acceptance of employees applying outside the department had a high impact on “happiness”, as did permission to work occasionally from home, shows what sort of flexible working initiatives would yield impact. European organisations need to do more and trust staff. Likewise, while some barriers are intrinsic, organisations must overcome others. European organisations need to open up flexible working to job functions outside of those such as sales or finance.
Finally, throughout all of this, HR must remember that Europe is not a single country or entity. Cultural differences can mean something that works in the Nordics may face resistance in Poland or Switzerland. However, cultures can also find their own processes that allow flexible working to be part of the norm.
To see more statistics on flexible working and other European workplace trends, read the full IDC and Cornerstone white paper, ‘Future People: Workplace Evolution in the Age of Digital Transformation’, here.
