A study of more than 4,000 employees by market research company GfK NOP suggests that one in four employees plans to leave their company in the next year. According to the study, the period of employees ‘battening down the hatches’ is beginning to end, leaving UK organisations vulnerable to the loss of highly-skilled key workers at a critical time for economic recovery. 

Based on an online survey of 4,231 UK employees, the study reveals that around 13% of workers claim they plan to leave as soon as possible, with a further 11% hoping to leave within 12 months. Staff in the agriculture, transport and communication, energy and water sectors are the most likely to be actively looking for a new job.

In addition to continued pay and recruitment freezes, the study found that many organisations are still going through reorganisation and continue to restrict training programmes in order to save costs.

Sukhi Ghataore, employee engagement specialist at GfK NOP, says, "High attrition rates can be disastrous for any business, contributing to disengaged staff as well as higher operating and recruitment costs. Improving retention is vital for business stability and growth, and ignoring these warning signs could hit the bottom line in the long run.”

Recession proofing has also taken its toll on workplace morale and job satisfaction, contributing to employees’ decision to leave. Around three in ten staff claim morale at work is worse than last year, with the public sector the worst affected. Around a quarter said job satisfaction has also suffered.

Says Ms Ghataore, "It’s clear that the measures put in place to counteract the recession are hitting morale, this being most evident in the public sector. It’s completely understandable why organisations have put these steps in place, but, in order to come out stronger, they need to examine the impact this is having on productivity and, ultimately, profitability. Securing the future success of the business is vital, but key to this must be ensuring the workforce is motivated and engaged.”

The fourth in the How to do Corporate Responsibility series of guides, from Cranfield’s Doughty Centre for Corporate Responsibility, is now available. Entitled The Governance of Corporate Responsibility, it advises organisations on successful tactics for ensuring a robust approach to meeting their corporate responsibilities.

Says Professor David Grayson, director of the Doughty Centre, “In the wake of the financial crisis, it is even more critical that boards and management assess their approach to their governance of responsibility.

“Attempting to integrate CR and sustainability issues within the governance framework of an organisation can be inherent with pitfalls. However, governing effectively and responsibly is critical for ensuring long-term business viability. We have researched best practice and reviewed the management literature to compile a set of critical success factors for achieving successful CR governance, as well as typical barriers and how to avoid them.”

Author of the guide Dr Heiko Spitzeck also highlights the importance of the tone from the top – from both CR committees and the board in their roles and responsibilities. “The board has a responsibility for strategic planning and communicating, especially in relation to appropriate moral and ethical standards for how the company conducts its business. Board members also need to ensure their company complies with the spirit, and not just the letter, of the law.

“Corporate responsibility governance in this context is not a one-size-fits-all approach. We hope our advice and recommendations will help as a health check of organisations’ governance arrangements.”

The Doughty Centre has also collaborated with Ogilvy PR Worldwide to produce a guide on Communicating Corporate Responsibility. The guide provides advice to empower communication and corporate responsibility experts, as well as delving into the use of language, the critical link with corporate values, engaging with digital communications, and thinking beyond Copenhagen. The fluid book version also provides case studies of real examples from across the globe of how the recommendations have worked in practice.

Both publications are available, free, at www.doughtycentre.info

In the Summer issue of Re:locate Sue Shortland’s timely piece on the role of change and communication in managing relocation will be a valuable read for anyone managing international moves as we move out of recession and companies continue to face takeovers and restructuring.

In today's economy, it is imperative to control costs while at the same time fulfilling your company's need to have the right talent in the right place at the right time.

Cross-border mobility, short-term assignments, challenging and emerging markets: all of these topics and more are on the minds of workforce mobility strategists, and on the programme at the Worldwide ERC Global Workforce Summit: Focus on Europe, Middle East and Africa, which takes place on 10 and 11 June in Frankfurt.

The summit will provide an opportunity to learn from global thought leaders who understand that effective workforce mobility programmes are essential for regional and global talent management.

A new report from PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC) predicts that the globally-connected nature of trade, technology, capital and regulation will demand a significant increase in the movement of employees between countries, leading to growing use of short-term and commuter international assignments.

These factors, coupled with the rise of emerging markets, increased focus on new revenue streams and changing demographic imperatives, are projected to increase the number of people working outside their home country by 50% over the next decade. Additionally, the number of countries that employers host employees in is expected to continue to increase, presenting new compliance, remuneration and communication challenges. PwC data documents the impact of globalisation, showing an increase from an average of 13 locations in 1998 to 22 in 2009 and an expectation that this will rise to 33 by 2020.

According to the just-released 2010 global relocation Trends Survey Report, published by Brookfield Global Relocation Services (GRS), the global recession drove broad reductions in the number of corporate international assignments during 2009. This decrease (46%) was nearly double what was forecast by respondents to last year's survey. However, despite last year's deep cuts, almost half the companies (44%) in this year's survey expect their expatriate populations to expand. Meanwhile, 44% of respondents expect their overseas assignments to remain the same, while 12% forecast a decrease.

At a time when final-year university students have been turning their attention to jobhunting during the Easter break, a survey by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) finds that nearly six in ten (59%) of employees who graduated in the last two years are not currently working in a field or profession related to the degree they studied.

The survey, Focus on graduate jobs, which is based on responses from more than 700 graduates in employment, comes against the backdrop of Government pledges to increase to 75% the proportion of young people they want to secure a degree or equivalent level qualification.

In addition, the survey, conducted for the CIPD by YouGov, finds that, among graduates not working in a field related to the degree they studied:

Our new Re:locate Factsheets series of downloadable PDFs is designed for anyone managing relocation, whether they are experienced or new to the role. Over the course of 2010, the series will build to provide a toolkit of resources giving step-by-step guidance on a range of subjects.

Just released, is the International Relocation Policy factsheet, sponsored by Clarke & Rose

Also available is the Domestic Relocation Policy factsheet

Please complete the form to the below to access the Relocation Policy factsheets.

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A fascinating masterclass at the CIPD annual conference highlighted research from Cass Business School that defines ‘ethicability’ as a key ingredient for successful organisations and identifies HR's potential role in it. Fiona Murchie reports.

As our fast-changing world slowly emerges from recession, companies around the globe have an increasing understanding of the vital part ethical behaviour and authenticity can play in building trust and creating organisations which, while fit for the future, remain innovative, thereby helping to mitigate some of the worst consequences of the credit crunch. Ethical behaviour affects employees, customers and the wider world, with implications for such issues as employee engagement, talent management and corporate social responsibility.

Roundtable discussions at Re:locate’s Winning Strategies: adding value to relocation event brought forward a number of extremely useful ideas to help refine and redefine relocation policies - both domestic and international. Sue Shortland reviews the trends highlighted and the policy tips that flow from them.

There is a clear downward trend in numbers of both international and domestic relocations taking place, linked to the economic crisis. This creates pressures to achieve cost savings for both domestic and international moves. To achieve cost efficiency, a number of options present themselves, including rewriting relocation policies to trim out excess ‘fat’ and create a ‘lean and mean’ approach. To some extent, this can be seen in the UK, where there is evidence of so-called ‘distress’ moves. These refer to domestic relocations resulting from issues such as factory closures. Policy provision here appears to present stark choices – take it or leave it (and, in the latter case, face redundancy).

Adrian Leach, of independent relocation company HCR Group, predicts that, over the next decade, “The Government will have to rein in its relocation expenditure by cutting back on GSP [Guaranteed Sales Price] packages and those eligible for support as the Civil Service shrinks and the decade of austerity takes hold. There will be a polarisation in the level of relocation service. The highlymobile, top-flight professional executive will be parachuted into global locations and demand a platinum, totally personal relocation service. In contrast, the increased mobility of the general workforce throughout Europe and within the UK will result in a more homogenised relocation service reliant on technology to inform and educate users and stakeholders whilst letting the employee ‘get on with it’. The technology will include iPhone applications with the RMC [relocation management company] property itinerary built in, allowing unaccompanied users to view, and even adapt, requirements on the move.