To a growing number of employees — particularly women and millennials — a good work-life balance and a pleasant atmosphere are decisive features that make organizations attractive to work for, according to the Randstad Employer Brand Research 2017 released today. Worldwide, employees ranked good work-life balance higher than a year ago; the ranking went from fourth to third on their priority list.

After an attractive salary and long-term job security, a good work-life balance and a pleasant work atmosphere as key contributors to company attractiveness. Based on the research, many employees are more susceptible to these attributes than organizations seem to realize.

Survey respondents worldwide reported the most attractive factors in an employer include:

• Provides attractive salary and benefits: 58%, down from 61% in 2016 survey
• Offers long-term job security: 46%, down from 52%
• Supports a good work-life balance: 45%, up from 43%
• Fosters a pleasant work atmosphere: 43%, down from 49%
• Offers career progression opportunities: 35%, down from 38%

The survey also asked what the least important attributes in a future employer are. Items which would involve taking risks were selected most often as unattractive. The least important attribute — international career opportunities — is often presented as an advantage by employers, but more than half of the respondents found this to be unimportant. This is probably because international opportunities involve outlay and upheaval — something not everyone is willing to undertake, according to the report.

The research also found that to employees globally, technology, IT and life sciences are the most appealing sectors to work in, although IT has lost some points in attractiveness after a few years of growth:

• Technology: 51%
• IT: 50%
• Pharma/life sciences: 50%
• Automotive: 49%

In North America, the most attractive sectors include:

• Technology: 50%
• Logistics: 45%
• Pharma/life sciences: 44%
• IT: 44%

The Randstad Employer Brand Research captures the views of over 160,000 respondents (general public, aged 18-65) on 5,495 companies in 26 countries. The research, conducted since 2000, was done by Randstad’s international research partner Kantar TNS. Respondents for the 2017 research were polled between September and December 2016.