Internal mobility the key to keeping staff in financial services: LinkedIn

The October report investigated hiring trends across the globe and found that employees who make an internal move in Australia — through either a promotion or lateral change — are more likely to stay at their company longer than those who stay in the same role.

The survey found that after two years, an employee who has made an internal move has a 76 per cent chance of staying at their company, while an employee who has not made an internal move has a 50 per cent chance of staying.

Further, after three years, an employee who has made an internal move has a 65 per cent chance of staying and an employee who has made no internal moves has a 38 per cent chance of staying.

Of the 15 industries LinkedIn analysed, financial services companies saw the biggest improvement in employee retention among internal movers at the three-year mark, while retail companies had the least likelihood of retention at the three-year mark even with employees who had moved internally.

LinkedIn said that 2022 had seen a slower pace of growth across major economies as hiring activity started to ease off the back of the post-pandemic recovery.

In Australia, there has been a 14 per cent decrease in the hiring rate since September 2021.

“Amidst the uncertain global economic climate, it is likely that the hiring rate will continue to decelerate from the historical highs of last year,” the report said.

LinkedIn found the labour market in the Asia-Pacific region remains tight, with many countries reporting low unemployment rates and throughout 2023 competition for talent with in-demand skills will remain fierce.

In fact, LinkedIn data showed that skill sets for jobs have changed by around 25 per cent since 2015 and are expected to reach 40 per cent by 2025.

LinkedIn head economist APAC, Pei Ying Chua, said in the eight countries included in LinkedIn’s Workforce Confidence Index survey, candidates’ and employees’ confidence in their ability to improve their financial situation in the next six months have decreased or remain low.

Flexibility is one of the most important criteria Australian employees are looking for with a rise of 10 per cent in the index since August 2021.

The report found that flexibility and compensation have pulled away as clear leaders, with a margin of more than 5 per cent ahead of security that is now in third position in the rankings of job criteria. Work/life balance has been relegated to fourth position.

Candidates in Australia also increasingly want remote work as employers scale back on remote-job postings.

In Australia, remote job postings on LinkedIn dropped slightly since September 2021, while applications to remote jobs increased by 3 per cent in the same period.

Remote-job posts in Australia reached a record high in April 2022 at 10.6 per cent of all job posts, while also attracting a peak of 13.3 per cent of all applications.