One in Four High Performers will Leave

One in four high-performing employees say they want to leave in the next 12 months, according to new survey of 35 companies in Europe published by the Corporate Executive Board (CEB).

The consultancy believes the results highlight a "worrying" developing trend for businesses. While these individuals perform 21% better than colleagues, they are 10% more likely to leave their organizations today than a year ago," the CEB said.

Read full article here from the Wall Street Journal

Managers Drive People Away

'Managers drive people away' was the key takeaway from Red Balloon's 2009 Reward & Recognition survey after 62% of employees rated Managers as ‘Poor’ or ‘Satisfactory’ when it comes to delivering praise. Also...........

• 33% of employees believe their manager knows what motivates them,

• 33% plan to leave their job now or when the economy improves,

• Only 29% of businesses are recognising their employees daily or weekly,

• 52% of employees say not receiving any recognition would contribute to their decision to leave the organisation, and

• Private one on one recognition is the most popular form of communication.

Download the full report at The Red Balloon Website

Students vote for the World’s Most Attractive Employers.....and the Winner is Google

Universum, the employer branding company, surveyed nearly 120,000 students at top academic institutions on ideal companies to work for. The results revealed Google as the world's most attractive employer, followed closely by its rival, Microsoft. The complete Top 10 read as follows:

1. Google,


2. PricewaterhouseCoopers,


3. Microsoft,


4. Goldman Sachs,


5. Ernst & Young,


6. Procter & Gamble,


7. J.P. Morgan,


8. KPMG,


9. McKinsey &Company,


10. Deloitte.

This is the first global index of employer attractiveness and highlights the world's most powerful employer brands. Those companies that excel intalent attraction and retention. Michal Kalinowski, Universum's CEOexplains, "Despite the short-term easing of competition for talent caused bythe recession, employers are faced with a shrinking global workforce, a lack of skilled workers and an increasingly demanding young generation. To secure talent under these conditions, they must develop true and differentiating employer brands...".

Lovisa Ohnell,Universum's research director comments, "These multinational brands are globally well-known and provide students with an excellent reference for their future career. They offer relocation opportunities, training and development, interaction with clients and colleagues in various countries,and due to size and economic stability, they're also seen as the best choice for secure employment."

For the Global Top 50 rankings, go to http://www.universumglobal.com/

To read the full article click here

Some Great Tips on Internal Communication to Employees by Email

Broadcast Email Communications Tips

Take Note: Employee Communications Strategies That Work

The cost of Nonboarding

The recruitment process is always surrounded by much emotion. In the desperate pursuit to find not only the person with the right skills, but also the personality for a team or company, often seems like mission impossible. Battling to backfill roles whilst incorporating interviews into an already packed schedule, leaves most hiring managers exhausted and relieved when that right person finally accepts the role. For many organisations, this is where the process ends.

Promises and expectations around the Employer Brand and experience created in the interview process must be reinforced by actions immediately. During the first few days and weeks, an organisation is constantly being sized up against previous employers to determine whether the new enthusiastic employee made the ‘right’ decision.

Nearly half (46%) of hires fail within the first 18 months on the job!

So how do you set your new hire’s up to succeed?

1. Connect Early- onboarding begins even before the new hire walks through the door. Connect with your new employee either by phone or email before they start. A pack which provides info on what to expect, who’s who in the zoo and a few insider facts about cultural norms will create excitement about the change and ease what for most is an extremely emotional experience.
2. Facilitate Contact Continuity- provide them with their email address before joining so they can communicate with their network where there are going and how they can be contacted.

3. Office Ready- ensure desks, phones, system access and functionality are operational so that unnecessary frustrations are avoided.
4. Newbie Networking- facilitating introductions externally, such as customers or key suppliers, and internally with employees across functions will help form relationships vital for the success of the new hire. New hires that create a strong support network early will settle in quickly and leverage the knowledge sharing opportunity of colleagues.
5. Coaching and Mentoring- whether sourced externally or from within the organisation, a coach or mentor will provide a trusted environment for the new hire to work through challenges and develop action plans for immediate resolution.
6. Establish Expectations-responsible for the day to day, line managers must document and communicate clear parameters about performance expectations throughout the induction period. Identifying specific actions and behaviours that are expected at the 1, 2 and 3 month mark will help the new hire self assess performance and address any road blocks early.
7. Buy In- communicate the vision, values and goals to connect the employee with the strategic direction of the organisation.
8. Buddy Up- connect the new hire with another employee at a similar level within the organisation for the first week so they have someone to provide insider info.

Much of the emotion that surrounds the first few days and weeks in any role, is the fear of the unknown-the people, the process, the system and their own performance. Any certainty you can provide around these areas will help a new employee feel ‘at home’ as quickly as possible and delivering on expectation.

Dismissing the GenY Attitudes

Global research shines the spotlight on a generation that continues to be the subject of many generalisations, confirming some myths and destroying others! The global report conducted by PriceWaterhouseCoopers* surveyed 4271 graduates from 44 countries.

Key Findings defines the Gen Y's as:
· Globally Mobile-91% believe they will work across geographic boundaries and will use another language in the workplace
· Socially Responsible-86% said they would consider leaving an employer whose sense of social responsibility did not reflect their own
· To be communicated via Social Media-85% are members of social networking sites such as Facebook
· Loyal -Employer loyalty is highly contingent on role fulfilment
· Commited-75% believe they will work for between 2 and 5 employers throughout the course of their lifetime
· Continuous Learning-Training and Development is the most important job benefit
· Leadership and Personal growth-98% believe working with strong coaches and mentors as essential to their personal development

As organisations struggle to maintain a diversified strategy to balance the needs of their workforce, those who are highly dependent on graduate intakes to foster and develop future leaders will need to get savvy with GenY speak.
The days of dismissing the ‘Gen Y attitude’ are fast closing in and those who can identify how, where and what to communicate will secure the best talent

*”Millennials at work: Perspectives from a new generation”

The Fallout of the GFC............Engagement levels for All Workers Drop 9% but Top Performers Drop 25%

The 2009/2010 U.S. Strategic Rewards Survey conducted annually by Watson Wyatt and WorldatWork revealed the impact downsizing and corporate rationalisation programs have had on employees. Key findings included;

• Employee engagement levels for all workers dropped 9% in the last year, for top performers this decrease is 25%.


• 43% of top performers said individual performance expectations have increased since last year.


• 20% less people would recommend others take jobs at their company.


• Top performers are 14% less likely to stay with their current employer.


• 61% say their companies have reduced or suspended bonuses.


• 41% believe that pay and benefit changes made by their employer in the past year have had a negative effect on work quality and customer service.

Many of the decisions made within organisations over the past 12-18 months were done out of sheer survival mode in reaction to the unknown. As a result, many organisations are now running a much leaner operation which will position them well financially for the next 2 year. However how much of this can be banked?

With as many as 50% of people looking to change jobs when the market recovers, it is imperative that organisations look at the total value proposition being offered to their employees with a critical eye.

• What does your value proposition consist of?


• Do all your employees know about the benefits that your organisation currently offers?


• What could you add to this proposition that would be of value to your current employees? How will you promote or communicate this?

The lasting financial effects of rationalisation and downsizing programs can all be undone in an instant if faced with a 30-50% workforce turnover rate in one year. Whilst most employees understood the decisions taken by organisations during the crisis were a matter of necessity, spending money in the coming months on recruiting new people rather than rewarding existing staff will be a kick in the face for the loyal employees who have supported the organisation through the down turn.

The 2009/2010 U.S. Strategic Rewards Survey was conducted in May 2009 and is based on responses from 1,300 full-time workers at large U.S. employers. Read more about the Strategic Rewards Survey at http://www.watsonwyatt.com/news/press.asp?ID=22341