GCC talent attraction and retention survey

Transcription

1 GCC talent attraction and retention survey

2 GCC talent attraction and retention survey Contents Executive summary Overview of participants 4 Risk and growth 7 Growth strategy and focus 8 Attraction and retention 9 Succession management 11 Talent development 1 Integration of talent management programmes 1 Conclusion 14

3 Executive summary This report summarises the results of Towers Watson s GCC talent attraction and retention survey. The survey not only looks at how companies in the GCC recruit and retain talent, but also how effective current systems are. The survey provides key insights into how the transfer of knowledge and skills takes place within companies that operate in the GCC. The survey covered 47 companies throughout the GCC as well as 1,66 employees working within the region. Attraction and retention are ongoing challenges for organisations across the GCC region, with many employees also highlighting concerns in terms of the ways in which training and development is rolled out. Although strategies and programmes are largely in place for talent and succession management, the disconnect seems to come in the implementation and ownership of such initiatives. The research uncovers a gap between what employers deem to be successful attraction and retention devices and what employees view as important. The attraction and retention initiatives that employers have prioritised for upcoming years are not always aligned with what employees would like to see change. In order to close the gap, there is a heavy dependence on employers to design and implement total rewards initiatives successfully, including communicating with employees and actively managing the change in expectations. GCC talent attraction and retention survey

4 Overview of participants Organisations There were 47 respondents, representing both multinational and domestic companies. Participants responded on behalf of organisations from a variety of industry sectors, with the strongest representation coming from Financial services, Energy and utilities, and Telecommunications industries. There were 16 companies that did not fi t within our broad industry sector categories and thus we have classifi ed as other. A full breakdown of the industries represented in the survey is shown in Figure 01. Figure 01. Industry of respondents 0% % 10% 1% 0% % Energy and utilities 8 Financial services Government and education Health services 8 Hospitality 8 Manufacturing Pharmaceuticals Retail and wholesale Services Telecommunication 8 Technology 8 Other towerswatson.com

5 Location A majority of participating organisations have operations in the United Arab Emirates (74%), Qatar (8%) and Saudi Arabia (%). A breakdown of the locations is shown in Figure 0. Size Participant organisations range in size from less than 100 employees to over,000, with around half the participants having over 1,000 employees. A breakdown of the size of participating organisations is shown in Figure 0. Figure 0. Locations of operations in the GCC 0% 40% 80% Bahrain Kuwait Oman Qatar Saudi Arabia United Arab Emirates 9 Figure 0. Size of firm in the GCC % % 10% 1% 0% % Less than to 0 0 to to 4,999,000 or more GCC talent attraction and retention survey

6 Employees There were 1,66 individual respondents from across all six GCC countries, made up of % nationals and 67% expatriates. The majority of respondents (9%) were in full-time employment, with almost one third (%) having spent two to five years with their current employer. A fifth of respondents (0%) were from government organisations, with health services and manufacturing the next most-heavily represented unique industries (6% and 7% respectively). A full breakdown of the industries represented in the survey is shown in Figure 04. The majority of employees earned between $1,000-$,000 per month (6%). The largest portion of respondents (1%) worked in administrative functions, 1% worked in engineering roles, and 11% held general management positions. A large majority (78%) had been to university, with 6% at undergraduate level only and a further 16% having achieved postgraduate level qualifications. Location The majority of individual participants were based in Saudi Arabia (%), with the United Arab Emirates the next most frequent location (4%). A breakdown of participant geography is shown in Figure 0. Figure 04. Industry of employment 0% 10% 0% Aerospace Automotives Chemical Consumer goods Energy/utilities Financial services Government Health services Hospitality Manufacturing Petroleum Pharmaceuticals Publishing Retail Services Telecommunications 4 Technology Transportation 1 Other Figure 0. Location of respondents 0% 0% 60% Bahrain Kuwait Oman Qatar Saudi Arabia United Arab Emirates 4 6 towerswatson.com

7 Risk and growth Risk and growth is a topic that is high on the agenda for many companies. Our survey shows that participants are broadly confident about the region s prospects. However, there are appreciable risks and challenges surrounding human capital and economic issues (with 0% of respondents citing these as a moderate or great risk), as well as financial (40%) and political (40%) issues. Economic risk remains a key concern of respondents in the region. However, confidence in the GCC economic market is extremely positive, with 90% agreeing or strongly agreeing to confidence in the region s economic prospects. Within respondents own industries, the outlook remains fairly upbeat, with 6% of respondents working within a fast growth industry, and 6% in a stable industry. It is a sign of the region that only 1% see themselves as operating within a mature industry. A full breakdown is shown in Figure 06. Figure 06. Concerns about risks and challenges 0% 0% 40% 60% 80% 100% Financial risk Strategic risk 18 Economic risk 8 Operational risk 11 Environmental risk 6 Human capital risk 4 Political risk Not at all Small extent Some extent Moderate extent Great extent GCC talent attraction and retention survey 7

8 Growth strategy and focus More than two-thirds of respondents (69%) indicated that their growth strategy is organic. Regional and global markets are key for this growth, garnering just under one-third of respondents focus each. Figure 07 shows a breakdown of results. Such significant organic growth targets place an even greater emphasis on the internal talent strategy. With 0% of respondents citing human capital as a moderate to great risk or challenge for business, workforce planning and talent management strategies must be put in place and senior management needs to have the capabilities to implement them. Figure 07. Own growth strategy 0% 0% 40% 60% 80% Organic growth Mergers and aquisitions towerswatson.com

9 Attraction and retention Employers Attraction and retention are regarded as the greatest risks to talent management. Employers main concerns are attracting appropriate talent (67%) and recruiting and selecting that talent (67%), followed by providing incentives and competitive compensation (%). See the full breakdown of concerns in Figure 08. In the upcoming three years, career development opportunities are cited as the top changes to be made by organisations (9% of respondents), with training and on the job learning (86%) and compensation and rewards (79%) following. The focus on nationalisation is clear from the almost 0:0 split in the expected changes in foreign recruitment, as organisations begin to balance the move towards transferring skills and increasing development of national employees. Figure 09 shows a breakdown of results. Figure 08. Concerns in efforts to manage talent 0% 0% 40% 60% 80% 100% Appropriate talent 4 Recruiting and selecting 8 1 Incentives and compensation 4 1 Succession management 1 1 Shortage of skills Employee turnover Aging workforce HR risk Not at all Small extent Some extent Moderate extent Great extent In the upcoming three years, career development opportunities are cited as the top changes to be made by organisations... Figure 09. Items to modify or change in the next three years to address talent risk 0% 0% 100% Compensation and rewards Retirement benefits or pensions 41 Training and on-job learning Career development opportunities Foreign recruitment Flexible working hours Total reward philosophy Offering perquisites 1 Continued education scholarships Promotion opportunities Work-life balance culture Perceptions of job security GCC talent attraction and retention survey 9

10 Employees On the employee side, factors that rank as important in both attraction and retention are similar to employers priorities; compensation and rewards, perceptions of job security, and promotion opportunities all appear within the top five. However, while employees value perquisites and job security, employers are more focused on modifying work-life culture and total reward philosophies. These items currently garner only 1% and 1% of employees interest respectively. However, if employers are successful in the design, communication and change management of total rewards initiatives then employer and employee interests could be realigned. Figures 10 and 11 show a breakdown of results. Gaps between what employers offer and what employees see as attractive need to be closed in order to create a powerful value proposition for attraction and retention that works in the interests of all parties....while employees value perquisites and job security, employers are more focused on modifying work-life culture and total reward philosophies. Figure 10. Attraction drivers 0% 0% 100% Compensation and rewards Retirement benefits or pensions Training and on-job learning 6 Career development opportunities 4 Foreign recruitment 1 Flexible working hours 9 Total reward philosophy 14 Offering perquisites 4 Continued education scholarships 14 Promotion opportunities 47 Work-life balance culture 1 Perceptions of job security Public recognition and praise 1 Figure 11. Retention drivers 0% 0% 100% Compensation and rewards Retirement benefits or pensions Training and on-job learning 4 Career development opportunities 7 Foreign recruitment 1 Flexible working hours 9 Total reward philosophy 1 Offering perquisites 9 Continued education scholarships 14 Promotion opportunities Work-life balance culture 1 Perceptions of job security Public recognition and praise towerswatson.com

11 Succession management Succession management is widely seen as a vital process in developing the next generation of leaders; in fact, 91% of respondents deemed it critical to the business. Despite this importance, a large proportion of respondents (46%) did not believe that their organisation had a welldeveloped succession plan in place. Although there is a need for succession management, few organisations have made concrete plans; this is reflected in the significant proportion (%) of respondents who are unable to identify any high potential employees under the age of 40 within their organisation. Figure 1. Number of identified high potential employees under the age of 40 0% 10% 0% 0% 40% or more 1 7 Figure 1 shows a breakdown of results. Preparing nationals for leadership was also cited as a significant part of succession planning, with 70% of respondents strongly agreeing or agreeing to this focus. However, only % of respondents could identify, within their current talent pool, a GCC national who has the potential to assume the role of CEO in the future. Consequently there is a significant variation between planned policy and subsequent implementation. Figure 1 shows a breakdown of results. Figure 1. Number of GCC nationals identified as high potential employees 0% 40% 80% 0 1 or more 0 6 GCC talent attraction and retention survey 11

12 Talent development Employers The shortage of critically skilled employees in the GCC means that employers must focus on developing and enhancing employees skills whilst ensuring that employees remain with the company long enough that the investment delivers a positive return. The survey results show that employers believe that on-the-job learning (64% strongly agree), coaching (0%) and mentoring from a manager (4%), as well as networking and collaborating with peers (48%) are effective methods to enhance and develop employee skills. However, the true effectiveness of this mixture is open to question, given the difficulties organisations face as they look to develop employees for senior management positions. A full breakdown of employers views on effective methods to enhance and develop skills is detailed in Figure 14. Employees Employees views are generally in line with that of employers, with on-the-job learning, networking, collaborating and mentoring all ranking highly with both groups. However, differences emerge when considering the intensity with which some of the methods are rated. For example, within the strongest agreement category, employees view external opportunities (49%), classroom learning (8%) and internal training (48%) as much more effective than employers do (17%, 17% and 10% respectively). It is vital that employers create the right mix of development approaches that address employees personal growth as well as business objectives. Figure 14. Effectiveness of methods to enhance and develop employee skills Employer response 0% 0% 40% 60% 80% 100% Learning on the job Networking and collaboration External opportunities 17 Classroom learning Self-directed learning web 1 Coaching from a manager Mentoring from senior leaders Internal training sessions Strongly agree Agree Neither Disagree Strongly disagree Figure 1. Effectiveness of methods to enhance and develop employee skills Employee response % 0% 40% 60% 80% 100% Learning on the job Networking and collaboration External opportunities Classroom learning Self-directed learning web 9 Coaching from a manager Mentoring from senior leaders Internal training sessions towerswatson.com Strongly agree Agree Neither Disagree Strongly disagree

13 Integration of talent management programmes The survey results show that although performance management systems are widespread, they are employed inconsistently. Although 8% of respondents state that a formal performance management system is in place within their organisation, only 9% believe that the performance management system is effective in identifying high potential individuals. Additionally, only 8% of respondents agree that their system provides appropriate incentives to employees, with a further 8% neither agreeing nor disagreeing about the effectiveness of the system. This indicates that rewards are not clearly linked to performance. Although the majority of respondents also indicated that senior management fully supports the organisations HR function, few could confi rm that there was a senior management representative who championed or sponsored any of the systems. As well as a lack of reward differentiation, there also seems to be a lack of integration between performance management systems and talent development programmes, which should work in tandem. In fact, only 4% of participants believe that their company s performance management system and talent development programme are integrated, and a similar number (44%) agree that the performance management system is linked to the company s succession management programme. Yet, the integration of the talent development programme and succession management programme fared slightly better, with almost half (49%) of respondents believing their organisations have integrated the two effectively. A full breakdown of the integration of talent management programmes is detailed in Figure 16. These fi gures provide a strong argument for the move towards more integrated talent management designs in order to ensure that data can be generated and shared across a number of systems for the benefi t of both talent and performance management. Figure 16. Integration of talent management programmes and systems 0% 0% 40% 60% 80% 100% Performance management system is integrated with talent development programme Performance management system is integrated with succession management programme Talent development programme is integrated with succession management programme Strongly agree Agree Neither Disagree Strongly disagree GCC talent attraction and retention survey 1

14 Conclusion Attraction and retention will continue to be a challenge as companies look to develop a loyal and dedicated workforce that can take them forward into the future. In order for the GCC workforce to grow and develop at the rate employers and governments aspire to, there needs to be a move towards a more integrated talent management approach and stronger alignment of expectations between employees and employers. Although the divide is not yet irrecoverably wide, as the importance of nationalisation increases, there is a risk that it will grow. In addition, within HR departments, there is a clear need to align talent and succession management programmes more consistently. Although programmes and procedures may be in place at the majority of organisations, they are under-utilised and are inadequate in providing appropriate incentives to employees. Nationalisation of the workforce will present the biggest challenge over the coming years and employers need to find the most effective solutions to help support and guide national employees into relevant management and leadership positions. Training and support for both national and expatriate employees will need to evolve in line with business pressures and job demands. 14 towerswatson.com

15 Further information For further information, please contact your Towers Watson consultant, or Elie Georgiou-Botaris elie.georgiou-botaris@towerswatson.com Zaki Zahran zaki.zahran@towerswatson.com GCC talent attraction and retention survey 1

16 About Towers Watson Towers Watson is a leading global professional services company that helps organisations improve performance through effective people, risk and financial management. With 14,000 associates around the world, we offer solutions in the areas of employee benefits, talent management, rewards, and risk and capital management. Business Central Towers Tower A, 7th Floor Sheikh Zayed Road Media City Dubai United Arab Emirates The information in this publication is of general interest and guidance. Action should not be taken on the basis of any article without seeking specific advice. To unsubscribe, eu.unsubscribe@towerswatson.com with the publication name as the subject and include your name, title and company address. Copyright 01 Towers Watson. All rights reserved. TW-EU October 01. towerswatson.com