Silverlink In the News

Growing signs that companies are starting to hire have employers bracing for something new: turnover.

Job hopping is expected to surge as hiring picks up. To prepare, employers are strengthening legal contracts designed to protect trade secrets and adding programs to retain valued workers.

About half of companies have employees sign non-disclosure agreements that bar them from disclosing trade secrets, according to a March poll by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). And more than a third are reminding employees who leave about the need to keep trade secrets private.

Why they're concerned: More than half of workers would like to leave their jobs for new opportunities, according to a July 2003 survey by Spherion, a recruiting and outsourcing company.

"Employers can't take people for granted anymore," says Sue Meisinger, president and CEO of SHRM. "Companies that haven't focused on this are going to really see an impact. It will be like a boulder rolling down a hill."

Companies are gearing up now to combat turnover:M/p>

• As part of an ongoing focus on retention, Best Buy this year began rolling out a revamped and more customized benefits package — from adding more flexible work schedules at the corporate level, to new incentives plans, to expanding health benefit offerings.
• "With the job market picking up, we're going to up our game," says John Walden, an executive vice president at Best Buy.
• Silverlink Communications, a Burlington, Mass., provider of voice communications for health care companies, has employees abide by non-disclosure agreements. They also are reviewing their compensation structure to be sure pay is competitive.
• L&T Health and Fitness, a corporate health management provider in Falls Church, Va., is looking at lessons learned during the tight labor market a few years ago when it relied on programs such as job sharing and flexible benefits to help retain hires.
  
  "Those programs didn't disappear, but now we'll put them back in the forefront," says Beth Rehberger, human resource director.

Turnover can cost an estimated $50,000 per departing employee, according to Spherion. Those who ignore the risk could be at a competitive disadvantage.

"It kind of sneaks up on you, and suddenly you're in a war for talent," says Tom Wamberg, chairman and CEO of Clark Consulting, which provides compensation and benefits consulting. "As the economy continues to grow, you'll see it happen."

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