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Employee turnover is a costly business!
Replacing an employee costs anywhere between 75% and 200% of the worker’s annual pay.
So, as more companies globally grapple to attract and retain employees, one area that HR teams need to increasingly focus upon is internal mobility with the help of a talent management software.
In general, the primary reason employees tend to leave a company is a lack of growth and learning opportunities.
As per a McKinsey study, as many as 41% of employees have stated no career development and advancement as one of the top reasons for quitting jobs.
Undoubtedly, then, if you want to retain your high-performing staff, you need to offer them both vertical and lateral advancement options within the organization.
This also needs to be supported by robust professional development, training, and upskilling opportunities to effectively discourage them from seeking opportunities elsewhere.
What is Internal Mobility?
Internal mobility refers to employees transitioning between roles within the same organization. Rather than opting for an external candidate, recruiters fill an open position by selecting a candidate from within the existing workforce.
Research shows that people are known to stay 41% longer at companies with higher internal recruitment.
Unfortunately, many organizations tend to overlook their most promising employees, instead directing their attention solely towards external talent.
On occasions, spending time and resources on external recruitment may not be essential since the exceptional talent you are trying to find outside may already be a part of your workforce. All they need is learning opportunities that can be offered with the help of learning and development software.
Need for Internal Mobility
After the challenges that came with the Great Resignation and the economic downturn, organizations have largely found themselves compelled to reconsider their strategies to attract and retain talent.
It is clear that internal mobility and internal recruitment by leveraging tools like learning & development software and talent management software offer several benefits to both employees and companies.
Let Us Look at Some of the Benefits of Implementing Internal Mobility.
- Better Way to Attract & Retain Employees
- Higher Employee Engagement
- Time & Cost savings
- Improved Performance
1. Better Way to Attract & Retain Employees
As per Gartner, an organization incurs $49 million annually due to employee turnover driven by a lack of growth and learning. Organizations offering internal mobility, however, experience higher employee retention rates.
As many as 81% of talent professionals have acknowledged that internal recruitment contributes to improved retention. Employees, too, are known to consider returning to a former employer if presented with better growth opportunities.
2. Higher Employee Engagement
Increased employee engagement correlates with lower turnover and absenteeism and increased productivity. Internal mobility plays a key role in fostering engagement, as employees feel happier and more committed when they perceive support for their career goals.
A Deloitte report shows a nearly 30% increase in employee engagement after implementing an internal mobility program.
3. Time & Cost savings
Picking qualified internal candidates to fill open positions can significantly expedite the hiring process, as pointed out by 63% of talent professionals in a LinkedIn survey.
Internal mobility not only saves time but also translates into cost savings. Given the substantial expenses tied to employee turnover, encouraging internal mobility with the help of a talent management software is a strategic business decision.
4. Improved Performance
Internal talent pool often performs better compared to external hires due to their familiarity with the company’s culture, resulting in a shorter learning curve. Organizations benefit because they already understand internal hires’ work styles and past performance, facilitating effective guidance to realize their full potential.
Best Internal Mobility You Need to Implement
- Establishing Transparent Guidelines
- Embedding Internal Mobility Across Employee Lifecycle
- Conduct Skills-gaps Focused Performance Assessments
- Conducting Regular 1:1 Meetings
- Create Roadmap for Development Across Teams
- Offer Learning and Development Opportunities
1. Establishing Transparent Guidelines
When enhancing any facet of your company culture, the initial step is to review your existing policies. It is necessary to form clear internal mobility policies, considering questions like:
- Do employees have a clear understanding of available upskilling opportunities offered through a learning and development software and other pathways for internal mobility?
- Is there sufficient support for employees expressing a desire for internal transitions?
- Are managers actively encouraged to champion internal mobility?
- Are HR personnel empowered to actively seek out internal candidates?
2. Embedding Internal Mobility Across Employee Lifecycle
To foster a culture of internal mobility, it is imperative to integrate it seamlessly into every phase of the employee lifecycle.
The right talent management software can be your best bet to integrate internal mobility at every stage including recruitment, onboarding, performance management, succession planning, learning and development and offboarding.
3. Conduct Skills-gaps Focused Performance Assessments
Performance reviews play a pivotal role in promoting internal mobility. Conducting effective performance reviews is crucial to nurturing talent, plugging skills gaps and stopping individuals from being overlooked for promotions.
A strong talent management software enables consistent performance reviews, providing a clear trajectory for professional development by assessing relevant skills and competencies. Incorporating self-assessments and 360° feedback reviews, which involve evaluations from various perspectives, including managers, direct reports, peers, and external stakeholders are a good option.
It is essential to make these reviews data-driven to mitigate unconscious bias, as bias can significantly impact company culture. Research shows employees who perceive bias are nearly three times as likely to express intentions of leaving their current job within the year.
4. Conducting Regular 1:1 Meetings
Such 1:1 meetings between managers and employees offer an excellent opportunity to identify and nurture promising talent.
Ideally scheduled on a weekly basis and conducted with a structured agenda, these meetings enable managers to monitor employee progress and address their needs. They serve as a useful opportunity to discuss internal mobility initiatives.
5. Create Roadmap for Development Across Teams
Also known as a career progression framework, these roadmaps are a strategic guide showing the skills and competencies employees should cultivate for advancement within a company. This is an important tool for fostering internal mobility.
This framework helps employees outline their growth potential and the necessary steps to attain their objectives.
6. Offer Learning and Development Opportunities
Incorporating continuous learning and development is an important element of any internal mobility strategy. Managers play a key role in coaching team members and supporting them in achieving their growth objectives. This involves guiding employees to suitable learning resources.
A strong learning & development software with learning material that is specially curated for employees depending on their roles and needs can help them continually enhance their skills to qualify for promotions or transitions to different roles.
Likewise, leveraging a talent management software with learning features can also facilitate these efforts.
To Wrap it Up
Internal mobility is integral to the success of a business, offering mutual benefits for both employers and employees. As your workforce aspires to advance in their careers and you seek to fill positions with top talent, embracing internal mobility creates a win-win scenario.
However, for sustained success in internal mobility, it’s imperative to make it a permanent part of your company culture. This calls for investing in the necessary tools like a talent management software or a learning & development software.
Platforms like Akrivia HCM pack both these along with everything else you need to manage your entire employee lifecycle.
