Mentorship programs are the best way to combat Brain Drain and accelerate Recruiting and Retention !

💡 When senior employees leave the companies, they also take away valuable institutional knowledge and experience with them. Although many companies don’t currently offer mentorship programs, hiring managers and job seekers see the benefits in doing so.

📣 Around 2 in 5 companies offer mentorship program to reduce brain drain (41%) and keep older employees engaged (40%).

☝️ While mentorship programs are not a new concept, but are gaining popularity as a way to combat the "brain drain" in the current labor shortage.

💥 Majority of hiring managers believe job candidates are more attracted to companies offering mentorship programs.

🚩 More than 4 in 5 hiring managers (83%) feel these programs are absolutely essential in reducing brain drain, according to a new interesting research published by Express Employment Professionals in partnership with The Harris Poll using data 📊 from among 1,010 U.S. hiring decision-makers.

✅What is Brain Drain?

Researchers defined Brain Drain when older employees retire without sharing knowledge of how to do their job to younger generations or some research (by Frederic Docquier and Hillel Rapoport) called it "high-skill migration" - often associated with emigration of talents or expatriation.

✅Top 3 reasons for retirement according to Hiring Managers & Job Seekers

Researchers found that US hiring managers report the top reasons for retiring at their company are :

1️⃣ As reaching what employees believe to be retirement age (65+ years old

2️⃣ No longer wanting to work

3️⃣ Feeling they have enough money saved to retire

Interestingly, job seekers’ perceptions regarding reasons for retirement are similarly aligned;

1️⃣ Feeling they have enough money saved to retire (58%),

2️⃣ Reaching what they believe to be retirement age (65+ years old) (53%)

3️⃣ No longer wanting to work (51%).

☝️ Researchers noticed that both hiring managers and job seekers agree employees should retire whenever they are financially able to do so (84% and 85%, respectively.

✅The benefits of Mentorship Programs

Researchers found the top benefits of offering a mentorship program are similar for hiring managers and for job seekers:

✔️ Feel the ability to upskill/reskill employees (70% vs 54%)

✔️ Attract prospective employees (43% vs 34%)

✔️ Cultivate greater connections between employees (49% vs 30%)

✅Mentorship Program must always be associated with Upskilling/Reskilling

Researchers noticed that around two-thirds of hiring managers (64%) say their company currently offers on-the-job training/upskilling followed by mentorship programs (40%) and reskilling (31%).

Among those that offer mentorship programs, most cite doing so as a means of upskilling/reskilling employees (81%).

📍Finally researchers conclude that mentorships may prove to be a viable option as employees retire and companies search for a method to bridge the potential knowledge gap. It's indeed a practical way to transfer knowledge, refine skills and foster a culture of continuous improvement. By connecting experienced individuals with those eager to learn, companies not only boost employee development but also build a stronger, more collaborative workforce.

☝️ 𝙈𝙮 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡 𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙬: This wonderful research highlights a certainly not new concept of "mentorship program" which seems to be gaining popularity in companies to combat the phenomenon of Brain Drain and labor shortage - by associating it with upskilling, organizations thus retain the skills and knowledge which are essential to them for business.

Thank you 🙏 Express Employment Professionals researchers team for these insightful findings: Bill Stoller Bob Funk Sr.

Dave Ulrich George Kemish LLM MCMI MIC MIoL

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#mentorship #braindrain #recruiting #retention