The UK’s workforce is among the least motivated in the world’s leading economies, according to a new study. Just six-in-ten employees were found to be well-motivated – with rates of pay and compensation found to be a key factor in that.
Source: Korn Ferry
Understanding how an organisation’s attrition rate compares to its rivals can enable it to stay ahead, retain valuable employees, and understand the cost of failing to retain its talent. It can also open the eyes of executives to how they can boost the motivation of their remaining staff – and ramp up productivity in the process.
According to a new study from Korn Ferry, this is an insight that many UK bosses in particular could benefit from. A survey of 10,000 global employees found that the British workforce is lagging far behind other countries when it comes to its motivation in the workplace.
The global average saw 71% of staff were motivated to “work above and beyond their roles”. This was led by India on 84%, the UAE and Saudi Arabia on 78%, and the US on 75%. However, just 60% of UK respondents said the same – suggesting that managers need to take stock of how their offerings could improve employee engagement, and ultimately their bottom-lines.
Source: Korn Ferry
Examining the values of workers, to see how employers could do this, Korn Ferry found that there were notable parallels for why people would either stay in or leave a job. When it came to reasons to remain in a job, the top criteria by far was “generous compensation” – cited by 37%, ahead of nearest rivals “flexible hours” noted by 30% of respondents, and “high job security” on 28%.
This was reinforced emphatically when Korn Ferry asked staff why they would leave a job. While 28% pointed to opportunities for advancement, and 27% said a lack of security would see them head for new pastures, 42% said that “low compensation” would cause them to head for the exit door. This suggests that if employers want to make the most of their talent – especially in the wake of an inflationary crisis which decimated their spending power – they need to consider improving their wages.
Speaking on the findings, Daren Kemp, Korn Ferry’s financial services lead for the EMEA region, said, “Employment is no longer a simple equation and quite possibly, it will stay this way for many years to come. Nothing is assured other than uncertainty and with that, trust and confidence is even harder to build as business leaders grapple with their future visions… More needs to be done if the UK is to remain competitive for top talent moving forward.”