The recent Towers Watson 2010 Global Workforce Study (GWS)—a biennial survey of employee attitudes and workplace trends covering 22,000 employees across 22 countries—exposes a Hong Kong workforce with low expectations of their employer, increased anxiety and new priorities. Deirdre Lander, Director of Data, Surveys and Technology, Towers Watson Hong Kong said, “For many employees, the recession has accelerated the decline of the traditional ‘deal’ that once existed between employees and employers, while cost, risk and responsibility for employees’ financial security, well being and career development have shifted further to the individual. Employees know that they are increasingly on their own for everything from managing their career, to planning for a secure retirement, but do not feel well equipped to deal with it”.
The gaps between employees’ expectations and the realities of the work place
The Hong Kong survey highlights a gap between what employees’ desire from their employers and what they believe they can realistically expect in their work situation. Highest on their ‘wish list’ is a work environment that offers job security (76% say it is important to them versus 51% who say it’s achievable in their current organisation), stability (72% versus 31%), and the opportunity to rapidly develop their skills (68% versus 39%).
Like their global counterparts, the financial crisis has caused them to stay put in their current organisations (48% declare they have no plans to leave versus 24% in 2007). The economic downturn has provided Hong Kong a temporary respite to the career and talent merry-go-round but significantly, 44% of Hong Kong employees currently believe that it is in their career interest to change organisations whenever a better opportunity arises. This suggests a self-managing career model through a series of organisations, rather than reliance on employers’ internal career frameworks and promotional steps. HK employees are more ‘mobile’ than their counterparts with a career track resembling more that of employees in emerging markets such as China (39%) and India (44%), than the mature economies such as the UK (29%) and US (20%). Employees cite employers’ lack of career advice and career path information as significant barriers to their career advancement.
Hong Kong’s employees low engagement level
Given Hong Kong employees’ career management practices, it might not be surprising that a large percentage of Hong Kong employees are not ‘engaged’ at work (HK ‘s engagement level is 9% ) and overall are substantially less engaged than their global (21%) and most of their regional counterparts. It is especially true within the area of discretionary effort and personal motivation. The fact that this dimension is most closely linked to business performance is a sign of under-optamised business performance. Looking at it historically, this 9% engagement level is still higher than the very low 5% recorded in 2007, showing that engagement levels have actually increased in Hong Kong over the difficult financial times. If Hong Kong continues to set its sights on being a global business hub, these engagement levels will be its Achilles heel. Research shows consistent evidence of a strong positive correlation between engagement, productivity and business performance.
A reflection of Hong Kong’s low engagement level may be that ‘vacations/holidays’ and a ‘reasonable workload’ now appear among the top 5 Attraction Drivers, together with the expected competitive base-pay, showing a more self-centered approach to the employment deal. Noteworthy in Hong Kong is that the ‘ability to do challenging work’ does not factor at all in HK’s top 10 Attraction Drivers as it does globally.
Hong Kong employees’ expectations of their leaders
It appears that in the current climate of uncertainty and constant change, employees value leaders who connect with the workforce on an emotional level. When asked what attributes they most wanted in senior leaders, respondents noted a desire for a senior leader who:
• Cares about the well being of others: 61% (versus 41% who agree their leaders demonstrate it)
• Encourages the development of talent in the organisation: 59% (versus 38%)
Lander pointed out, “This craving for the more ‘emotionally intelligent’ aspects of leadership reinforces the finding that many employees feel disconnected from their organisation and are looking for their leaders to project integrity and empathy, as well as focusing on the development of employees.” However, when asked if their leaders demonstrate such behavior, employees’ answers show a gap of around 20 points. As leadership is a top influencer of engagement in Hong Kong, this lack of confidence in leaders to deliver on expectations is further evidence of employees’ feeling of insecurity and the changing employment deal.
Growing divergence between employers and employees on benefits
Most employees understand that they are primarily responsible for their financial security and well being but less than 50% feel comfortable in managing them, particularly in retirement income and healthcare after retirement. Close to 30% indicate they need to work after retirement for financial reasons. Also they are less comfortable than in other parts of the world in managing personal health and well being.
For example, employees acknowledge that they are responsible for planning and managing their retirement needs (53%), but 38% don’t feel prepared to actually do so and generally doubt their ability to manage key aspects of their future security—45 % and 40 % respectively declare they don’t feel comfortable managing their financial future and their personal health and well-being.
While more than 60% of employers have not changed their benefit programs in the last 12 months, close to 60% of employees would consider benefits when deciding leaving or staying with an employer. Moreover, almost 70% of employees prefer to have certain flexibility in managing their benefits. The survey clearly demonstrates that employees prefer more self-control on the management of their benefits. They also expect more regular communications about reward and benefits and simpler plans and administration. Forward looking employers should review their benefit strategy holistically to ensure they can engage their employees to drive their business performance.
How to Manage a New Employment Proposition
The trends and pressures in today’s work environment will continue to change how businesses operate and how people connect to their employers and their work. The ‘paternalistic’ employment proposition typical of last century is not sustainable for most employers today. However, nor is a disengaged, self-interested workforce. If Hong Kong employers want to fully take advantage of a strong business position and to boost employees’ engagement and productivity, they may look at:
- Honing their ability to enable employee self-reliance, fostering within each person the knowledge, skills and confidence necessary to effectively manage their careers, their benefits and their financial future
- Creating a more personalised work experience for segments of the workforce, aligned with how employees add value to the business
- Developing leaders, reward structures, and HR programs that are more flexible and responsive to the ever-changing global business environment
Lander concluded: “Employers need to adopt new and creative practices to balance effective cost and risk management with enhanced employee retention and engagement.”
Paul Arkwright
Publisher
