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Hong Kong – Retention and recruitment a concern for HR departments

23 October 2014

A survey conducted by recruitment firm en world Hong Kong has revealed that more than half of HR leaders face challenges when it comes to retaining top employees. Moreover, approximately 85% of HR professional believe that their firm has struggled to recruit top talent.

The economy across Asia Pacific is continuing to grow and the quality of local hires is seen by many as key to developing a successful business.

Bernard Yeo, Country Manager for en world Hong Kong believes that the main challenge HR departments are facing is in hiring and retaining so-called A-Players: “HR is prioritising recruitment programmes but due to increased employee turnover they are struggling to catch up… Outsourcing recruitment on a contingency basis enables employers to adopt a ‘just in time’ mentality to mid-career hiring so they can use in-house resources to focus on retention after people join.”

Mr. Yeo recommends that HR Professionals consider the following questions regarding their top talent:

What are your people thinking? Mr Yeo explained: “One relatively simple, but yet highly underappreciated, technique of employee retention is the age-old technique of getting feedback from current employees. Employers need to know what current employees value but also where they think company culture or benefits are lacking.”

“An employee satisfaction survey can be helpful for existing employee retention and motivation but also for attracting fresh talent. It is well known that motivated staff are crucial for company growth and profit acceleration so companies should also review what and how they reward key behaviours and activities that drive the business.”

What opportunities exist for me at this company? “For example, internal mobility plays a quite significant role when it comes to providing an overall positive picture, so small initiatives like the proper advertising of open roles internally can have a huge impact in showing a future career plan to your team,” he added.

Are my Colleagues A-Players? “A-Players want to be around other A-players and need to be recognised as such. Nothing is more demotivating to your top talent than seeing resources squandered on underperformed whilst their own career and performance goes unrewarded. Any kind of retention technique must primarily revolve around employee motivation especially of your ‘star employees’. Acquiring and retaining excellent workers often depends on a feeling of whether ‘the business is exciting or not’,” Mr Yeo concluded.