In case you missed it: Oct. 2

Posted by: Matt Rivera

Nearly 13 months after last year’s market crash, we’re finally catching glimpses of a light at the end of the tunnel. The pace of layoffs has slowed and in many cases, companies are starting to think about rebuilding their workforces for 2010.

However, now employers may face a new dilemma: the voluntary departure of their employees. With the economy starting to turn around, and companies thawing out from their hiring freezes, the high impact talent that was able to retain their jobs throughout the downturn will be faced with new opportunities for employment. For employers, the challenge will be retaining this critical talent in light of low morale and high frustration. And if those efforts are unsuccessful, the issue becomes how they can minimize the impact on their organizations.

Here are a few places we’ve seen the discussion brewing over the past two weeks:

Workforce Management: Cultivating Knowledge Transfer. The author highlights how many companies are not prepared to deal with the loss of talent that stems from layoffs, retirement, or other voluntary departures. He goes on to offer steps companies can take to develop sufficient knowledge transfer plans to ensure knowledge retention and continue to meet strategic objectives in light of changes in the workforce.

Brand for Talent: Off-boarding and Your Employer Brand. The post cites news reports that in order to reduce costs, Hyatt fired their housekeeping staff at several Boston area hotels and replaced them with outsourced contractors … but only after the staff trained their own replacements. The post warns that while outsourcing and other cost-cutting strategies may be necessary in current economic times, the employment brand could suffer severe damage if off-boarding is not handled as carefully as the on-boarding process.

Who Needs Employees Anyway: The Cost of High Turnover. The blogger lists the direct and indirect costs of employee turnover, estimating that it costs nearly 25 percent of a departing employee’s salary to replace him/her. That’s not to mention the non-monetary costs such as institutional knowledge loss and damaged employee morale and engagement. To combat employee turnover and avoid the associated costs, the blogger suggests conducting regular employee engagement surveys to stay on top of employee sentiment.

MarketWire: New Survey Reveals Rise in Employee Confidence in Q3; Employer Should Brace for High Employee Expectations and Turnover With Economic Recovery. According to the Glassdoor.com Employment Confidence Survey conducted by Harris Interactive, in Q3 employees reported fewer layoffs and other compensation-reducing measures at their companies than in the previous two quarters. Employees also reported higher rates of optimism and confidence related to the future:

• 57 percent expect a raise, bonus and/or promotion
• 35 percent expect hiring freezes to be lifted and/or more employees to be hired in their department
• 24 percent expect health benefits and perks that were previously reduced to be restored
• 19 percent expect to look for a new job

There’s a lot out there to indicate that employees are going to expect more in the coming months. Companies should determine now how they’re going to respond to these demands, and how they will cope with the loss of employees who leave in search of greener pastures.