Ten years ago, a lot was written about how IT employees were looking for unusual perks such as on-site massages and pet grooming. Today’s Employee, however, seems a lot more concerned with his or her future and security, rather than having a “fun” work environment. This has resulted in many companies rethinking their benefits and employee compensation. Today’s new hires are looking for a work environment that promotes learning and professional development, allows them to work with great people, and have a positive impact on the world.
Professional Development
One of the most important keys to job satisfaction according to a recent study of young IT workers, was job training and continuous learning. Being able to access relevant training and continue their professional growth is absolutely essential to a worker’s feeling of engagement with a company. Simply put, if an employee doesn’t see how he or she will grow with a company, they will look for other places that will allow them to take on different opportunities.
Fortunately, ensuring that every employee feels ready to take on new challenges is a benefit that can help a company as much as it can help an employee. Effective training programs, as well as clearly defined paths to advancement, can do a lot to improve and maintain morale.
Positive People
Today’s employee is looking for a work environment with an actively engaged and positive group of co-workers and managers. It’s important to realize that this goes beyond simply providing unique recreation and relaxing a dress code. IT workers want co-workers who they can actively learn from and collaborate with. An environment with intense competition among workers, particularly those that encourage playing favorites among employees, are actively avoided by many workers. It’s important to note that today’s employee isn’t saying that he or she doesn’t want to have challenges at work, only that he or she has little interest in so-called “office politics”.
Finding the right people and managers that encourage a positive work environment is absolutely essential to attracting the best employees. The interview process, particularly for managers, should include questions that determine the management style of the candidate, rather than simply focusing on results. It’s also important to consider how potential candidates will fit into a particular office.
World Impact
Finally, today’s employee is very concerned with how his or her work will effect the world around them. While many new graduates are interested in working for organizations that actively work towards improving the world, for-profit companies that don’t have an altruistic mission statement shouldn’t automatically assume that they cannot attract good employees.
Many new graduates want to see how their work will effect the world around them. Consider touting the diversity of a particular product line and/or it’s secondary and tertiary effects. Promote the ways in which a product or service improves the world, or even just the lives of a few specific people. Employees are looking to see if their work will matter beyond the next quarterly profit report. The best companies are able to show how their work does just that.
Fortunately, it’s rare that any of these three factors will effect the day-to-day operations of a company, but it is important to think of your organization through these lenses. If the majority of new IT hires are evaluating potential employers for their training and growth potential, work environment, and impact on the world, then your company needs to promote itself with these three concepts in mind.
At ICS, we have years of experience with understanding multiple corporate cultures in order to create job descriptions while using social media and other recruiting techniques to attract the very best talent. Let our client engagement process work to identify the top candidates for a job, and ensure that they will integrate with your current workforce.
