A new survey by Milieu Insight—which asked hiring decision-makers across Southeast Asia on their perceptions of ‘job-hoppers,’ has found that, in general, attitudes are more neutral than they are negative. The survey—conducted across Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, The Philippines, and Indonesia included both employees and hiring decision-makers.
The latest findings indicate that these countries mutually agree that job-hoppers are those who stay in their company for less than one year. However, this may not be as consequential on a worker's job-seeking attitude as before. Across the region, most respondents indicated that they would consider leaving a role held for less than 12 months if a better opportunity arose with almost three quarters indicating that they would be ‘somewhat likely’ or ‘very likely’ to leave.
In the past, if a candidate’s CV showed a short tenure or to be changing jobs frequently, it was seen as a ‘red flag’ by many in talent acquisition. The report indicates that nowadays, it may not be as much of a ‘red flag’ as before with most hiring managers in Southeast Asia holding a more neutral impression of job hoppers with the exception of The Philippines where 64% of managers view them positively.
The unanimous top concern that hiring managers across the region share is that job-hopping employees will constantly be seeking better opportunities outside their current company. This is a predominant concern for 76% of decision-makers in Singapore. Additionally, over two-thirds of Singapore’s decision-makers note that a lack of company loyalty is their next biggest concern. This is in stark contrast to their Thai and Indonesian counterparts where 26% and 33% of respondents respectively feel the same way.
Overall, opinions towards job-hoppers remain divisive, with some concerned with their resilience to remain in their job when faced with challenges whilst others view them as more resilient to changes in the working environments. Despite mixed opinions, most hiring managers valued job-hoppers for their diverse experience which would enable them to bring different perspectives to the company.
How HR can help retain staff
As companies fight to attract and retain talent, there are several areas that HR professionals may want to focus on in order to combat attrition:
- Engagement is key—devise new ways to keep your employees engaged, make them aware of organisational achievements and foster a culture of innovation and collaboration.
- Stay up to date and understand what employees truly want—whether it is flexible working policies, giving back commute times or focusing on mental health and well-being, conducting staff pulses can help your organisation to better understand what benefits your employees want.
- Focus on mental health and well-being—the pandemic has affected everyone on the planet, ensure that your organisation is dedicated to supporting employees and finding ways to be more flexible during this time.
- Embrace the Gig Economy—with a vast, highly-skilled and specialised workforce readily available to be tapped into, your organisation may want to consider the possibility of using contract staff to work on projects.
Paul Arkwright
Publisher
