Businesses Will Demand Greater Productivity From Teams in 20

Hudson Report Reveals That New Zealand Businesses Will Demand Greater Productivity From Teams in 2013

Hudson cautions that investing in staff development and effective leadership is vital to achieving productivity gains

Auckland, New Zealand – 15 JANUARY 2013 – Almost a third of all employers (30.8%) cite enhancing performance / productivity of their existing team as their top HR priority for 2013, according to the latest Hudson Report: Employment Trends released today.[1]

This is followed by retaining staff (17.2%), staff development (16.9%), developing leadership capabilities (11.3%), attracting suitable staff (11.0%) and restructuring/right-sizing (8.2%).

More than half of employers (61.8%) intend to keep staffing levels steady this quarter, while 30.4% intend to employ more people, according to Hudson (NASDAQ:HSON), a global talent solutions company with expertise in leadership and specialised permanent and contracting recruitment, RPO, talent management, eDiscovery and project solutions.

Business confidence in the South Island remains buoyant due to increasing signs of Canterbury rebuild-related activity. Nationally, the industries with the most positive hiring intentions include Government, Education and Financial Services/Insurance.

“Businesses are having to work harder to create opportunities,” said Roman Rogers, Executive General Manager, Hudson New Zealand. “There’s been a huge focus on managing costs. But concurrently businesses are looking to lift productivity, performance and quality of service.”

Workloads have increased for more than half of employees and more than a quarter are working more than they were a year ago.[2]

“Most companies are asking more of their people. But employers need to realise they can only go so far before this becomes counter-productive,” said Rogers. “If productivity and enhanced performance is the end-goal, employers need to recognise that key drivers are staff retention, capability and strong leadership, and take a strategic approach to minimising business risk and disruption. If these factors are not addressed, enhanced productivity will be out of reach for many organisations,” cautioned Rogers.

“Staff retention and high performance are outcomes of strong employee engagement. So, exceptional leadership, staff buy-in to what the organisation is trying to achieve and feeling part of the team are essential. It can take six months to a year to bring a new employee up-to-speed. Therefore, employers can ill afford to overlook the needs of their current team.”

“While enhancing productivity requires sufficient demand, it’s also about ensuring that staff have the right capability, that is the skills, behavioural and motivational fit, and are supported by systems, process and organisational structures to deliver efficiently. Cloud-based and other new technology platforms and evolving work practices are also having an impact on productivity with organisations achieving gains of as much as 25% to 30% through remote working environments.”[3]

New Zealand has also prioritised developing leadership skills higher than any other country surveyed in Asia Pacific.

“Many leaders have been focused on managing their businesses through tough times, but as growth starts to kick in, a new leadership skill set and stronger focus on engaging and inspiring their teams will be required,” said Rogers.

“Employers need to strike the right balance between competing organisational demands. If an organisation has a robust strategy and vision, but not the right leadership, then it is unlikely to succeed. Equally, employers focused on driving productivity without an equal emphasis on staff engagement and development, will likely experiencing high turnover,” he added.

“Ultimately, HR and recruitment practices must be continuously assessed to ensure they match the organisation’s strategy to the current economic conditions, and that there is the right capability to succeed.”

- ENDS -

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The Hudson Report; Employment Trends 2013 has changed its reporting approach to achieve greater transparency and consistency across markets. This makes it simpler to compare results and geographical variations. From now on, Hudson will report on three findings: the percentage of employers intending to increase staffing levels, those intending to maintain them and those intending to decrease headcount. 'Positive hiring expectations' refers to the proportion of employers intending to hire more employees during the forthcoming quarter. Hudson will no longer use the 'net effect' figure.

About Hudson

Hudson is a global talent solutions company with expertise in leadership and specialised recruitment, contracting solutions, recruitment process outsourcing, talent management, outplacement and eDiscovery. We help our clients and candidates succeed by leveraging our expertise, deep industry and market knowledge, and proprietary assessment tools and techniques. With more than 2,000 people in 20 countries, and relationships with millions of specialised professionals, we bring an unparalleled ability to match talent with opportunities by assessing, recruiting, developing and engaging the best and brightest people for our clients. We combine broad geographic presence, world-class talent solutions and a tailored, consultative approach to help businesses and professionals achieve higher performance and outstanding results. More information is available at Hudson.com.

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