Unreasonable Job Expectations Top Reason for New Hires Leaving in Year One

March 12, 2007 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - One-third of employers lose between 10% and 25% of their new hires within the first year, with the number one reason for losing new hires being unrealistic job expectations from the organization, according to a recent survey by consultant Novations Group.

The Boston-based consultant found that a little more than half (54%) of employers lose less than 10% of their new hires within year one; 11% of companies suffer a 25% to 50% loss of workers within that time.

Following unreasonable job expectations, other reasons for leaving a job within the first years include:

  • Failure to grasp “how things get done” in an organization, 39%;
  • Poor communications with an immediate supervisor, 33%;
  • Failure to develop a sense of belonging and purpose, 26%;
  • Inadequate technical skills, 23%;
  • Not understanding the link between the job and organization goals, 21%;
  • Failure to connect with key employees, 18%;
  • Inability to establish trust and credibility quickly, 13%; and
  • Poor people skills, 13%.

“Because there’s no reliable baseline data we don’t know for sure if the findings mark a trend or whether first-year departures have been a pressing problem for a long time. But we think they’re a not a new issue,” said Tim Vigue, a consultant for Novations, in the release. He further noted that the frequent worker turnover might be a result of not enough time spent on deciding whether new hires are a good fit to begin with.

The survey included responses from 2,046 senior human resources and development executives.

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