Partner Article

Don’t forget your staff when planning growth

It’s perhaps fair to say that UK businesses are facing a more positive future than many would have thought just a year ago. Times have been difficult since the financial crisis of 2008. Companies across the board are likely to have seen budget cuts, client losses and employee exits. But things are certainly now on the up.

According to the latest Grant Thornton International Business Report (IBR), economic optimism in the UK has reached 82%, the second highest percentage reported across the globe, with only 14% of businesses facing potential growth concerns. In amongst this rise in confidence, headcount expectations are also increasing. The latest Sage Business Index, for example, revealed that almost half of UK SMEs plan to recruit in the near future.

However, while hiring more staff is a positive move, businesses must ensure they factor existing employees into hiring strategies or potentially risk losing top talent to the competition. If you consider that as a business you are engaging with potential candidates who are employed by your competitors, it can only be assumed that similar conversations may be taking place among your own staff.

Given that it is your existing employees who have helped pull the company through a recession, know your business inside and out and make up your existing corporate USP, losing these professionals could be costly to your organisation. However, while many company owners might recognise that keeping staff happy and motivated is important, our latest research suggests that more could be done to retain these individuals.

In a survey of senior HR professionals at our recent Talent Leaders Connect event, we found that while retaining talent was the biggest challenge for over half (51%) of UK businesses, very little internal career progression is currently being offered. Only 17% of those questioned had an effective succession plan in place, while 34% admitted that less than 10% of roles were filled with internal promotions in the last year.

As many organisations are looking at increasing headcount, it could be argued that internal promotions should be considered first. Not only will this create more engagement with staff and aid retention rates, but it also can’t be overlooked that for top-tier positions, promoting from within is more cost-effective than external hiring. After all, the amount of training required will be reduced as the individual already has a keen insight into the business.

Clearly, then, hiring activity needs to have a balance of internal promotions and external recruitment. Without this balance, businesses could be risking losing the best talent to other organisations, potentially impacting corporate growth. Retaining existing employees is just as important during times of growth as bringing new talent in. In order to keep hold of the best staff, businesses need to ensure the right promotion opportunities and career development are available.

Ken Brotherston, Chairman of The Job Post

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ken Brotherston .