5 minute read 8 Feb 2022
crowd of business people

What is your unique value proposition in the race for talent?

Gerard Osei-Bonsu
By Gerard Osei-Bonsu

EY EMEIA Integrated Mobility Leader; EY Switzerland Managing Partner, People Advisory Services

Passionate about helping companies realize the full potential of their workforce. Enjoys traveling and skiing. Father to two energetic, football loving boys.

5 minute read 8 Feb 2022
Related topics Workforce
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As employees’ needs shift, business leaders need to accommodate them – or risk losing top talent.

In brief
  • The employee value proposition (EVP) is more important than ever in today’s labor market
  • One key employee need is flexibility – and employees will seek work elsewhere rather than relinquish the freedom of choice experienced during the pandemic
  • Business leaders need to consider how to best incorporate hybrid working as part of a powerful employee value proposition to attract and retain talent

The technology behind the fourth industrial revolution was always going to make hybrid working feasible; human nature made it inevitable.

It wasn’t supposed to be just yet though. The global pandemic changed everything, bringing the future forward and forcing massive change before we were prepared for it. None of us could imagine the speed we would have to adapt to an entirely new way of working.

Now, as economies re-open and the pandemic recedes, the long process of rebuilding must begin. It’s time to grapple with the realities of what it means to be leaders in this new hybrid working world.

We have done a great deal of work to answer the key questions about how this affects technology, processes, and productivity, but, as importantly, we should be focusing on the humanity that builds and drives every great business.

Even alongside profound shifts, people want work to provide human connectivity, value, purpose, and diverse experiences, just as they always have. They just don’t want to have to come into the office every day to get it.

The looming race for talent will be won by organizations and leaders who can deliver this, ensuring they put people at the centre of everything they do and foster environments which facilitate a celebration of our humanity.

Unemployed

-37,026

persons less compared to same month last year (-24,2% vs. Nov. 2020), as reported by SECO for November 2021

That the pandemic has made people reconsider their working lives is evident in what the Harvard Business Review is terming the “Great Resignation”. Staff turnover is skyrocketing and record numbers of people are handing in their notice. A shortage of qualified workers is driving up wages and it’s very much an employee’s market. In Switzerland, this is reflected in the low level of unemployment, which stands at just 2.5% as of November 2021. Compared to the same months last year, unemployment decreased by 37,026 people (-24,2%). 

Flexibility

90%

of employees want flexibility in when and where they work.

The EY Work Reimagined Employee Survey 2021, revealed that around 90% of employees want flexibility in where and when they work, 38% want shorter working weeks and 67% think their productivity can be accurately measured irrespective of where they work.

Yet less than half – 48% – believe that their company’s culture has changed and improved during the pandemic. Companies have recognized this shift and are generally on board with this for both when and where people work, but they have a far rosier perception on how well they’re doing (take the fact that 72% of employers believe that workplace culture has improved since the onset of the pandemic).

How EY can help

Leadership, culture and DE&I services

Our Leadership, Culture and DE&I professionals can help your organization drive value by aligning your relevant initiatives to your strategic goals.

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Our clients have told us that the ability to move talent around is key to talent retention, operations, and achieving strategic objectives.
Gerard Osei-Bonsu
Integrated Mobility Leader | EMEIA, Managing Partner, People Advisory Services | Switzerland

During the pandemic, people were quick to build flexibility into their lives and they don’t want to have to give this up. If they feel forced to, many will simply leave for places that deliver on these new expectations. Our clients have told us that the ability to move talent around is key to talent retention, operations, and achieving strategic objectives.

Hybrid working is here to stay, with over 75% of employers recognizing that their post COVID-19 approach to flexibility will impact on their ability to attract and retain talent (according to the EY Work Reimagined Employer Survey).

On top of providing interesting, meaningful and well-paid work, they have to give their people the flexibility to go to the gym, manage the school run and do laundry, while, at the same time, make coming to the office rewarding, fun and worthwhile.

It’s a Sisyphean task, but getting it right will be the core of your employee value proposition (EVP).

The race for talent is a reality – and it’s only going to intensify as the economy recovers and firms buy in or build the skills and resources needed to execute new opportunities.

Your EVP will be your key differentiator from your competitors, as long as it’s authentic. If it’s just a sales pitch rather than a real offering, the blowback will be intense.

In Switzerland, the Gender Equality Act requires employers with 100 or more employees to conduct an equal pay analysis and have it reviewed by an independent body. This provision enters into force as of 30 June 2022, with action required within one year. Even in the absence of legal requirements, it’s important to understand that millennials and Gen Z employees often don’t have the same notions of privacy as their predecessors, and they are far more comfortable sharing salary and other details with others, not just within organizations but across industries and the economy as a whole. This information is empowering and emboldening workers in a way that we’ve never seen before.

The looming race for talent will be won by organizations and leaders who can deliver a unique value proposition. We have identified four pillars that we believe will empower organizations to build and drive long-term value creation for their people:

How EY can help

Learning and development consulting

To adapt to the emerging new work environment, people will also need vastly upgraded digital, technical, management and cultural capabilities.

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  • Learning and upskilling

    Extreme shortages in high-demand skills are expected by 2030 — and we are all competing for the same skills.  Progressive corporations across industries are increasingly investing in re-skilling programs to both transform their human capital and retain their top talent. But, underfunded learning and development functions are struggling to drive the change. Organizations should empower the workforce by offering upskilling opportunities and diverse careers. Encouraging choice around learning topics improves motivation and enables people to succeed in ways that are personalized to them.

  • People experience

    The nature of work, and our expectations of it, are rapidly changing. Combined with technological, demographic and disruptive organizational designs, companies need to continuously enhance people experience. Recognizing the impact experience has on engagement and productivity, it has become imperative for companies to take a more comprehensive view of how to influence it. For example, they need to calibrate a people strategy that is inclusive of workforce diversity. It’s also important to be creative about engaging with current and potential employees at all levels, and engage in continuous listening to understand and address people’s needs.

  • Purpose and culture

    As organizations transform and grow, especially though M&A, it can be challenging to shift employee behaviors to new ways of working and integrate the culture of leadership teams. To ensure an engaged workforce at all levels, businesses need to embrace a diverse and inclusive company where the vision of the business can be easily aligned to employee values. Companies should start by strengthening the links between organizational and personal values, including ESG goals.
    Developing retention programs and intervention frameworks will help retain key talent, especially if backed up by a genuine policy of equity, transparency and inclusion

  • Wellbeing and flexibility

    The pandemic has brought a more intense focus on the health and safety risks of people movement and at the same time, people feel more grounded around what really matters. Employees are demanding flexibility in the post-pandemic working world in terms of where and when they work. Flexibility is no longer simply a “nice to have”. It is an employee expectation that employers must take seriously in order to attract and retain talent. Leading organizations are establishing holistic wellbeing as a business imperative and core leadership competency. This can be enhanced through flexible work arrangements that create a more productive and engaged workforce.

If we’ve learned anything from the past two years it’s that while we don’t know when change will next be forced upon us, we do know that the things that make us human – our hardwired need for connection, value, purpose, and diverse experiences – won’t. Embracing both change and humanity will, as always, be the key to long-term success.

  • Article References

    1. Das Eidgenössische Departement für Wirtschaft, Bildung und Forschung (WBF), „Die Lage auf dem Arbeitsmarkt“, Nov. 2021 (https://www.seco.admin.ch/dam/seco/de/dokumente/Publikationen_Dienstleistungen/Publikationen_Formulare/Arbeit/Arbeitslosenversicherung/Die%20Lage%20auf%20dem%20Arbeitsmarkt/arbeitsmarkt_2021/lage_arbeitsmarkt_november_2021.pdf.download.pdf/PRESSEDOK2111_D.pdf)
    2. Bankrate.com Survey, 2018 (https://www.bankrate.com/personal-finance/survey-share-salary-information-october-2018/)

Summary

Employees’ expectations have fundamentally shifted as lessons learned from the pandemic become business as usual. With the race for talent heating up, business leaders need to focus on a genuine employee value proposition that puts people at the center of everything they do, fosters an environment that celebrates our humanity, and enables workers through technology and processes. Hybrid working will be an important accelerator in the race for talent.

About this article

Gerard Osei-Bonsu
By Gerard Osei-Bonsu

EY EMEIA Integrated Mobility Leader; EY Switzerland Managing Partner, People Advisory Services

Passionate about helping companies realize the full potential of their workforce. Enjoys traveling and skiing. Father to two energetic, football loving boys.

Related topics Workforce
Upvote