There is no war on talent

The concept of the ‘war on talent’ was first coined by McKinsey in the late 1990s and business leaders and the media have been writing and talking about the ’future of work‘ for at least a decade. It’s time to forget both of these concepts.  

Yes, recruitment and retention challenges are widely documented across the world. 

Long before the pandemic and the so-called great resignation, talent has been the number one issue keeping leaders awake at night. Only this year has cyber risk trumped talent acquisition and retention as the top issue facing Australian businesses (and even then, only by one single point).

Throughout 2023, four in ten employers reported recruitment difficulties, as reported by the Australian HR Institute’s quarterly outlooks. A survey by Guild showed 69 per cent of leaders say the need to attract talent is ‘urgent’.

Over the last few years we have seen historically low unemployment, closed borders amplifying the skills shortage and the tightest labour market in Australian history. 

But there is no war on talent. The future of work is here.

Photo by Jason Goodman on Unsplash

The average employee turnover in Australian workplaces for the 12 months to March 2024 is 15%.

One in three employers report turnover of 20% or above.

One in five Australian workers are either considering leaving their jobs in the next 12 months or already actively seeking a new job. 

Average tenure in Australia is less than half of what it was a decade ago. 

Over the last two decades, we’ve seen a shift in what people want from work. The meaning and purpose of work, the place it holds in our lives, has evolved.

So too has the relationship between employer and employee. While ‘work’ has been part of our lives for hundreds of years, we’ve only been measuring employee engagement for a couple of decades.

There is no war on talent.

We’re in the era of talent.

People want work, to work for them

‘No matter what the ‘market’ is doing, there will always be competition for good employees. Forget the war on talent, we need to shift our mindset towards the new dynamic of work and the era of talent’.

Millennials are the largest cohort in the Australian workforce. They stay in a job for an average of 2 years and 8 months and half of these employees would change jobs every two years if they could.

Shorter tenure is not a trend, it’s the new normal. 

‘What the market is doing’ is much less relevant than it used to be. Leaders will always need to recruit and retain people. 

‘Looking for a job is an expression of optimism. It’s a way of saying ‘I want something different, something more or better’. - Cynthia

It’s easy to see what people want (and expect) from their employer has changed. So who is in the driver’s seat in 2024 - employer or employee?

The answer to this question of course depends on many factors including geography, economic conditions, labour market dynamics, lifestyle and life stage, skillset and the priorities of both the employer and the people who choose to work there.

Talent market dynamics will continue to shift. Wherever the balance of power falls, the era of talent is here. 

Want to read more about the modern work landscape, common talent trends and new approaches for the era of talent? Check out Heart Talent’s NFP Talent Attraction Report.

You can also read about recruitment challenges in the Australian NFP sector in this free download.

Got a question or want to know more about how Heart can help? Get in touch and let's have a chat.