Voluntary employee turnover in tech sector on the rise in Asia Pacific

Technology companies across the Asia Pacific region are struggling to retain employees while they ramp up their hiring plans, according to the latest Radford Global Technology Survey, part of Aon plc.

According to the survey, voluntary employee turnover in the technology sector, a closely-watched metric for human resources leaders, has increased in eight out of 10 markets this past quarter.

The report found the as employee turnover has gone up, so too has the percentage of technology companies reporting aggressive hiring plans.

Companies reporting that they are actively planning and recruiting for organisational growth increased in six out of 10 key Asia Pacific markets. In Singapore, the percentage of technology companies that plan to hire aggressively increased from 5.5% to 6.0%. At 18.4%, India has the highest percentage of companies actively growing their workforce.

Meanwhile, China experienced a drop in companies expecting to grow headcount -- from 10.9% to 7.0% -- which could be partly driven by an ongoing trade dispute with the United States.

According to Alexander Krasavin, partner and chief commercial officer of Emerging Markets in the Rewards Solutions practice at Aon, trend lines often converge between turnover and hiring.

"When the technology sector is in a robust state of growth, employees are more likely to be lured into new jobs by attractive rewards plans, career advancement, and opportunities to expand their skills," Krasavin explains.
 
Krasavin defines rewards as anything an employer provides that an employee finds valuable.

"As companies reassess their retention strategies, they must work harder to optimise their rewards to align them with their employee preferences," he says.

"In addition, businesses with a voluntary turnover of more than 10% should evaluate their employer brand and human capital practices carefully."