Benefits February 13, 2001

IT Retention Requires "Flexibility"

February 13, 2001 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Employers trying to hold onto information technology pros need to think flexible - flexible work schedules - according to a new survey.

Reported by

Nevin E. Adams

The survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Unifi Network subsidiary found that the top three strategies for enhancing IT worker retention were:

flexible work schedules (62.5%)
challenging work assignments (52.1%)
comprehensive training programs (32.6%).

The survey also found that referral bonuses for IT management and exempt positions were double those paid to employees outside of IT, on average.

Interchangeable Skills?

While newspapers were used by 86% of survey respondents, only 6% have found this to be an effective recruiting tool. And just 6% of those surveyed have used online skills marketplaces or tapped retirees as recruiting sources, despite an evidenced belief that such methods are much significantly more effective in reaching the IT professional.

The study also found that while smaller firms are contending with higher overall turnover than their larger counterparts, IT turnover rates remain relatively consistent throughout the industry.

The survey was conducted among 144 companies across a range of industries.