Employee retention is almost as big an issue in the job market today as unemployment. While most focus and emphasis is placed on the unused surplus talent in the market, that fact that employed employees keep exchanging one employer for another within and across industries mostly goes unnoticed. A recent survey by BrighterMonday revealed that there is a general engagement level of 27% among Kenyan employees. This means that most companies lose a lot after recruiting and training employees only for them to leave within a year.
The 5th HR Forum held at Fairmont the Norfolk was held to address the employee retention issue among Kenyan companies. To help unpack this weighty issue.
Speakers at the forum tackled topics that feed into the theme of employee retention. These topics included;
- Leading Millennials in the Workplace
- Engaging Productive Employees
- Developing Talent in The Workplace
- Inclusion and Diversity in the Workplace
- Employer Branding & Organizational Culture
- Driving a Tech Savvy Workforce
Leading Millennials in the Workplace By Martin Oduor Business Advisor & Executive Coach The Leadership Group
Dr. Oduor went on to demystify the millennial myths and misconceptions that have given rise to conflicts in the workplace. He went on to say that it is expected that 5 different generations will be working side by side in the workplace by the year 2020. Millenials are usually perceived as self-absorbed, myopic, entitled and abrasive. The truth is that millennials are largely misunderstood. The older generations need to accept that millennials are here to stay and that the only way to make use of their potential is to first understand what they are about. Dr. Oduor advocates for employers to refine their interactions with millennials, be flexible enough to accommodate them in order to get maximum output. See Dr. Oduor’s presentation for more information on leading millennials in the workplace and The Leadership Group.
Engaging Productive Employees Pauline Kiraithe Founder Talent Gurus
Pauline Kiraithe started by highlighting the current state of employee engagement, or the lack of it. Surveys conducted in the past show that 87% of people in the world hate their jobs resulting to 98% of employed professionals actively searching for jobs. The BrighterMonday job market survey places the general engagement index at 27% in Kenya. According to Pauline, this should be a cause for concern for all employers, because if employees are spending half their energies looking to get out, why not ensure they are engaged and convert that energy and focus to building your brand? Read more on types of employee engagement, how to change the mindset and Talent Gurus in this presentation.
Inclusion and Diversity in the Workplace Muriithi Ndegwa CEO Kenya Institute of Management
Muriithi started by defining the terms diversity and inclusion with an emphasis that even though they might seem to pull in different directions, they indeed go hand in hand. Diversity stems from the premise that balance can only be achieved if everyone of all gender, colour, race, creed, religion can access equal opportunities while inclusion seeks to remove barriers that create discrimination and exclusion from opportunities. Muriithi noted that diversity and inclusion in Kenya have been misconstrued to mean gender balance only. However, it is diversified to also include women, youth, people with disabilities and citizens from marginalized areas. Find out more about diversity and inclusion, its impact in Kenya and beyond and Kenya Institute of Management in this presentation.
Driving a Tech Savvy Workforce Joshua Mwaniki Country Director Andela Kenya
Joshua Mwaniki’s presentation was all about making the workplace a community, with a heavy bias on the rise of the tech-savvy workforce who want everything they do to have meaning. It is about bringing life to the workplace and not leaving half of who people are at the door. For companies to succeed in their objectives and remain relevant to the digital world around them, they need to be technologically driven and not just adapt to technology, they need to attract the tech-savvy workforce and not avoid them, and they need to create an environment where this workforce can live and thrive. See more on attracting and retaining the tech-savvy workforce and learn something new about Andela in this presentation.
Edward Hough Founder Mammoth Consulting Africa Employer Branding & Organizational Culture
Edward expounds on employer branding and organizational culture. The brand embodies culture and engagement which translate into behaviour and emotions. With this knowledge, it is clear that since emotions drive behaviour, engagement must be created to drive an excellent culture. When culture and engagement align, you get the employer branding sweet spot that creates a cycle of continuous growth for your company. Get more insights on employer branding and culture in this presentation.
Sean Massingham Head of Knowledge Management & Performance Improvement, Anjarwalla & Khanna,ALN
Sean spoke about developing talent in the work place, because a lot of emphasis is often placed on performance and employee output. Some employers even avoid training and developing employee talent because that means that you might be making them better for other employers. Sean not only highlights the importance of training, but clearly gives steps on how it should be done. For instance, he pointed out that training, like any other resource in the organisation, should be done in an open way with clear communication to avoid the appearance of arbitrary allocations of resources. Find out more about how to conduct successful and impactful training exercises in your organisation and more about Sean in this presentation.
Watch the sights and sounds in the video below.
Be sure to join us for the next HR Forum. All communication on the same will be done on our channels.
