Personnel in small-to-medium enterprises in Scotland and the North of England are the least likely to change employers because their managing directors treat them more as friends than colleagues, according to a study.

 
A survey undertaken among 250 MDs and owner/managers by Illuma Research on behalf of Manpower’s talent and careers management consultancy Right Management revealed that staff churn rates were lowest in Scotland (20%), followed by the North West of England (23%) and the North East (24%). The figures rose to 25% in the West Midlands and 28% in London and the South East.
 
But maintaining warm relationships with staff was also seen as more important to MDs the further north they were based. In Scotland, some 44% of respondents said they tended to view workers as friends rather than colleagues. Some 42% in the North West of England felt the same as did two out of five in the North East. The figures fell to 36% in the Midlands and only 28% in London and the South East, however.
 
Jayne Carrington, Right Management’s managing director, said: “MDs of SMEs tend to have more of an impact on company culture than MDs of larger organisations. This may explain why staff churn rates are lower in the regions where MDs are more likely to see staff as friends rather than colleagues.”
 
Nonetheless, two thirds of top managers cited the need to make redundancies as their top HR concern, while just over three out of five were worried about losing talented staff. A huge 88% also believed that employee-related legislation was too complex, while 63% felt that pay and benefits regulations caused them difficulties.
 
Worryingly, however, some 72% of MDs felt that they spent too much time on HR issues and only 53% regarded it as time well spent.
 
Carrington said: “Managing directors are worried about losing top talent, but just over half favour motivating staff through incentives rather than career development. Providing career progression and development opportunities will ensure they retain talent and build a committed and engaged team to drive business growth.”