Media and marketing professionals are so desperate for flexible working, following their experiences during the pandemic, that they are even willing ditch to competitive pay and bonuses to achieve a good work/life balance.
According to new research from not-for-profit healthcare provider Benenden Health, the average business in the sector has seen more than a tenth (15%) of its workforce leave since the summer of 2020, with employees readdressing their priorities and seeking new benefits from their workplace arrangements.
Record numbers of workers have been seeking alternative employment over the past year, with the number of open jobs in the UK recently surpassing one million for the first time ever.
Yet while many employees have moved on to start a new career and others have been forced to find a job that fits their new circumstances, a significant number have simply switched jobs due to the way their business treated employees during the pandemic, highlighting the continuing challenge for firms to keep workforces happy and maintain a competitive advantage.
The survey of business owners within the media and marketing industry reveals the principal reason employees were leaving was to secure long-term flexible working (39%), a request exacerbated by the pandemic and an experience that many now seek permanently in their employment.
Almost two thirds of business owners in the sector (59%) explained that their employees place more value on work/life balance now than before the pandemic, while almost half (44%) acknowledge that they need to do more to stand out and attract new recruits.
As the pandemic has also placed increasing importance on the health of employees, two-fifths (41%) of business leaders in media and marketing accept that they are putting themselves at risk of losing talent by not providing a strong wellbeing offering.
When asked what they consider to be the most important factor in attracting new recruits, leaders media and marketing bosses said that a good work/life balance was now top (41%), followed by flexible working (32%), with these now more important than offering competitive pay (26%).
Positive workplace culture (26%) and training (29%) were also prioritised over more traditional benefits including opportunities for career progression (24%) and bonuses (24%).
With over a third of businesses in the sector (35%) admitting they do not currently offer employees a good work/life balance, firms across the UK are at risk of losing millions of valuable employees purely for not providing an appropriate policy.
The survey appears to back a separate study published in the summer by Hitachi Capital UK, which revealed media (37%) and marketing (32%) professionals would be willing to take a 10% pay cut to maintain their home office lifestyle, with only 8% wanting to return to their desks full-time.
Benenden Health is calling on businesses within media and marketing to consult with their employees quickly and regularly to understand what they can do to support them and then commit to do better. This will enable them to be competitive to recruit and retain the best talent as they continue to recover from the impact of the pandemic.
Benenden Health head of OD Naomi Thompson said: “The coronavirus pandemic has had a seismic impact on the nature of the workplace, with many employers and employees forced into a whole new way of working.
“We were already seeing a shift away from financial remuneration being top of the list of motivators for employees, with requests for wellbeing support and flexible working ever growing, but this change has only been exacerbated and accelerated by the pandemic.
“Businesses in media and marketing are now at a crossroads – with almost a quarter telling us that they are concerned that their talented people may resign soon – but this provides a great opportunity for firms to adapt and position themselves as an employer that listens and supports employees.
“By building and committing to a health and wellbeing strategy that works for all the workforce, it will help them to attract the best talent and retain the valuable assets that they already have.
“A happy, healthy workforce is a productive one so the benefits of flexible working and wellbeing support are not only there for individual employees, but business operations as a whole. Crucially, building a strategy that includes these elements can actually be very affordable, despite the untold benefits it can have both today and in the future.”
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