For many sectors, employee turnover may have slowed and workforce is still top of mind, as employers compete to retain their top talent. We’ve seen companies take a hard look at what their workforce is truly asking for- and what makes business sense to offer in this rapidly changing climate. Consistently ranked in the top three workforce priorities, alongside pay, is the aforementioned flexibility, which benefits both male and female workers. Now flexibility looks different from employer to employer and from industry to industry, but we’ve seen companies offer truly innovative solutions to a workforce that is calling for greater balance in their professional and personal lives.
The Dayton region, like other communities across the country, is especially focused on how to attract and retain young talent. Employers play a critical role in these efforts, as we know that jobs are a primary driver for relocation or retention for high-school and college grads. High quality work based learning experiences are the best way for students to envision a future in the Dayton region, and creating clearly defined pathway for the growth and advancement early career professionals connects them more deeply to employers and to the broader community, ensuring that we’re more likely to keep them in Dayton
While workforce challenges will continue as generational shifts impact our labor force, the talent recruitment and retention strategies that I’ve seen employers innovate and adopt over the last several years have left me hopeful that we’ll be able to meet these challenges head on.
Stephanie Keinath, MPA, IOM, is Vice President of Strategic Initiatives for the Dayton Chamber of Commerce.
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