Flexible Working Stems Costly Staff Turnover Attract And Retain Top Staff With Flexible Working

Business people in Ghana reveal flexible working is often the make-or-break of job offers. 70% reveal that they would choose one job over another similar one, if it offered flexible working. A staggering 61% confirm that flexible working also improves staff retention, finds the latest survey by Regus, the global workplace provider.

Recruitment is an expensive process that many global businesses are keen to reduce. With employee retention reported as a priority for over a third of business[1], what measures should businesses be prioritising to slash hiring costs, attract and retain top staff? Flexible working, respondents reveal, provides a solution to all three.

The survey, canvassing the opinions of more than 20,000 senior executives and business owners across 95 countries, confirms that in Ghana, flexible working can be used to avoid employee churn (and the consequent expense of recruitment agencies) as 64% of respondents point to flexible working as a perk that attracts top talent.

The research also found that:

· 58% of respondents say offering flexible working makes employees more loyal;

· 48% of workers would actually turn down a job that ruled out flexible working;

· 55% say they would have stayed longer in their last position had flexible working been an option.

Commenting on the study, Thierry Vernet, Area Director for North and West Africa for Regus says: “Hiring and retaining top talent is an age-old priority for successful businesses, but not all companies can afford to offer golden bonuses or mouth-watering salaries while remaining competitive. Stemming churn is also vital to avoid incurring recruitment agency costs and the inconvenience of starting the hiring process.

“Flexible working, which is lower cost than fixed office working, offers the attractive perks of lower stress and better work:life balance to existing and prospective employees, and provides a low cost solution to attracting and retaining those top workers. It's also striking how mainstream the perk of flexible working has become, with many respondents actually choosing their jobs on the basis of flexibility.”