Retaining skilled talent a top challenge for employers this year

Some of the biggest challenges for UK organisations right now include skilled talent retention, meeting pay expectations, providing a good work-life balance, and supporting employees’ wellbeing.

New research by HR software provider Ciphr of 300 UK HR decision-makers found that organisations are facing around 11 different workplace challenges or HR pain points, on average.

Over half (51 per cent) of respondents reported employee retention as their top worry for the year ahead. Many (46 per cent) also think that their organisation could struggle to meet employees’ expectations around wages, work-life balance, and mental health and wellbeing support.

Over four in 10 (45 per cent) organisations also expect to find recruitment, employee engagement, and managing remote and hybrid working expectations challenging.

Other key concerns include providing a good employee experience (42 per cent), closing skills gaps (42 per cent), reducing absenteeism (41 per cent), and ensuring a positive workplace culture (41 per cent).

The top 15 challenges facing UK employers right now

• Retaining employees / keeping top talent (cited by 51 per cent of survey respondents)
• Meeting employees’ pay expectations (46 per cent)
• Providing a good work-life balance for employees (46 per cent)
• Supporting employees’ mental health and wellbeing at work (46 per cent)
• Meeting employees’ remote or hybrid working expectations (45 per cent)
• Recruiting enough qualified talent (45 per cent)
• Maintaining an engaged workforce (45 per cent)
• Providing a good employee experience (42 per cent)
• Promoting talent from within to fill skills gaps (42 per cent)
• Reducing absenteeism caused by work-related stress (41 per cent)
• Ensuring a positive workplace culture (41 per cent)
• Investing in / providing regular employee training and development opportunities (40 per cent)
• Encouraging employees to attend the physical workplace (40 per cent)
• Managing budget shortfalls (39 per cent)
• Investing in new technology for the business (38 per cent)

Commenting on the survey findings, Claire Williams, Chief People and Operations Officer at Ciphr, highlights the necessity for organisations to recognise that their people are their greatest asset, and that business success is contingent on continued investment in their employees. She said: “Like it or not, the world of work is changing. Employers need to step up and invest in their people if they want to hire the best talent and then retain them.

“Employers are facing a range of challenges. A volatile global economy that has fast-changing and sweeping ramifications for our labour market. There’s salary inflation that’s not been seen at this scale before (recently, at least). Technical advancements continue to evolve at lightspeed, expanding digital skills gaps. And we have multi-generational workforces with wildly different expectations and demands from their employers when it comes to values, purpose, flexible working, diversity, social impact, and so on.

“Many organisations are also being impacted by tighter budgets as they are having to invest in new technologies, increase their compliance standards and levels of professionalisation, and mature their business to keep up with competitors and the market.

“Investing in your people, however, doesn’t necessarily need huge budgets. It does require leaders to invest in a different mindset though. Those that fail to recognise and respond to these challenges will ultimately be left behind.”

Williams recommends that employers keep a strategic focus on their people. She added: “Go back to basics if you need to and overhaul your employee value proposition (EVP) to ensure that you have considered every aspect of the employee experience. Use data from existing employees and recent leavers to understand where there is room for improvement. And do some research into what other organisations are doing well.

“Budgets aside, the biggest investment that employers can give is their time. Creating clear purpose, transparency, and good communications, a strong and forward-thinking culture, diversity and social impact – all come down to the time that leaders are willing to put in and spend with their employees. It’s the easiest, yet most frequently missed, action that organisations can take and it will – very likely – have the biggest, positive impact on employee experience and retention.”