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Keep talent on your turf
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DON'T be fooled into thinking that the economic slowdown is a safety net for retaining your top IT talent--quite the contrary. The temperature in the overall IT job market may have dropped a few degrees, but the competition for top IT talent is still red-hot.
"There will always be competition based on greener grass on the other side of the fence," said Gary Gunnerson, IT architect at Gannett Co Inc, in Arlington, Va. "IT employment remains supply-constrained--it's a seller's market."
Organizations are being particular about whom they hire. They aren't surfing the Net for résums; they're looking inside other organizations to identify the information technologists.
"Truly differentiated IT talent is always in short supply," said a CIO at a large government organization who asked not to be identified. "Quality talent rarely looks on Web sites or responds to general efforts. They must find you or be found by someone in your direct or extended organization."
If you want to keep the cream of your own IT crop from being whisked away by other companies, your focus must be on retention. A strategy to keep employees happy just doesn't cut it anymore. Serious retention plans must be implemented and consistently acted on.
The biggest turnoffs-the perks that don't work-according to the IT managers we surveyed, include mandated team building events, stock options for private companies and counteroffers for certain employees.
"The biggest mistake management can make is not matching the reward to the employee strata," said the CIO. "Money doesn't do much for younger workers, and nonmonetary accolades are meaningless to the most senior."
Creating a solid retention strategy is not rocket science. The bottom line is that IT personnel, like most other employees, want to work in a friendly environment where there are open lines of communication and where hard work and extra effort is first recognized and then acknowledged .
Indeed, the simpler solutions often reap the most rewards. "Offer challenging work opportunities to work with advanced technology," said Robert Rosen, director of information management for the US Army Research Laboratory, in Adelphi, Md. \;
More specific compensation suggestions include competitive, long-term incentives; a clearly defined bonus plan; timely salary reviews; help in developing IT project portfolios that are aligned with corporate priorities; a flexible manager; training budgets under the general control of the employee and his or her manager; provision for control of a project; technical and business training; monetary recognition; and flex time.
"Time off, without charge to formal leave, seems to work universally," said the anonymous.(SD-Agencies)
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