22 percent of employees plan to give up their current job in the next twelve months, although they are actually satisfied with their general job situation. Nevertheless, around 14 percent complain about a lack of long-term career opportunities in their company. The better options on the job market also motivate several people (8 percent) to prepare for a job change in concrete terms. In addition to this almost quarter of all employees, there is a further 5 percent who are very dissatisfied with their current job and therefore want to quit within the next six months.
These are the results of the current “Global Talent Trends Study ” by the global consulting firm Mercer, which is quite worrying for many companies. For the German part of the internationally renowned study, 530 data sets from managers, HR managers, and employees in Germany were examined.
In addition to the surprisingly high willingness to change jobs, the study also shows the different perceptions of the situation in the company between employees and HR managers. The lack of trust of employees in career planning is apparently not recognized by many HR officers: 71 percent of the HR managers surveyed are very satisfied with their in-house talent management processes.
Many job changes due to a lack of flexibility in the company
The ideas of employees and managers or HR directors also diverge on other issues: More than half of the employees surveyed stated that both their direct manager and their colleagues support flexible work (56 and 60 percent, respectively). However, one in four employees reports that they have had a past job asked for flexible working conditions, but these were not granted. Almost as bad as the lack of trust that apparently prevails in large parts of the workforce: Because every second employee (52 percent) has concerns that any work part-time or in the home office harms their own career opportunities impact.
Many employees would like more innovations and freedom in the design of their future jobs: Almost two-thirds (63 percent) of full-time employees are interested in new types of employment on a contingent or contract basis according to the study. But neither business nor HR managers have shown themselves to be open to this so far: They believe that the booming “gig economy” (ie small jobs that are awarded to independent freelancers) in the next two years will not have a major impact on their business.
Health more important than prosperity for workers
But what are the positive factors that can induce employees to change jobs? 69 percent of employees say that their health is more important to them than their wealth. If one disregards the salary, which is still the number one change factor, vacation or free time is the biggest plus for the employees surveyed around the world when choosing an employer – in the form of sabbaticals, additional vacation days or fewer hours worked for a lower salary. On the other hand, benefits such as fitness studios or relaxation rooms at the workplace are less important to employees.
In addition to flexibilization, there is also individualization necessary to create an overall satisfactory working environment for the employees. But even here, only one-third (34 percent) of employees say that their company knows their individual interests and skills. However, this is exactly what 51 percent want.
