The economic turbulence of the past few years has created a talent paradox: amid stubbornly high unemployment, employers still face challenges filling technical and skilled jobs.

Employers now need to adjust their talent management initiatives to focus on retaining employees with critical skills who are at a high risk of departure and the capable leaders who can advance their companies amidst continuing global economic turbulence.

To help employers gain a better understanding of the latest employee attitudes and emerging talent trends, Deloitte Consulting LLP teamed with Forbes Insights to survey 560 employees across virtually every major industry and global region.

Based on the results and Deloitte's analysis of the talent market, three emerging challenges rose to the top:

• Engage employees with meaningful work or watch them walk out the door: Employees value meaningful work over other retention initiatives. 42% of surveyed respondents who have been seeking new employment believe their job does not make good use of their skills and abilities.
• Focus on "turnover red zones": Employee segments at high risk of departure, or "turnover red zones," are employees with less than two years on the job and Millennial employees (those aged 31 and younger).
• When it comes to retention, leadership matters: 62% of surveyed employees who plan to stay with their current organizations report high levels of trust in corporate leadership.

The survey results reveal significant shifts in the talent market over the past year, particularly when it comes to turnover intentions. Organizations need to ask themselves the fundamental questions of the talent paradox: Are employees truly satisfied? Or are they simply accepting their fate by "making do" with their current employers because of a difficult job market?


Rising employee satisfaction creates an important window of opportunity for companies. They can reap the benefits of greater employee productivity and engagement by improving their talent strategies, developing leadership opportunities, and tailoring their retention practices.

Yet, if companies see satisfied employees as a reason to become complacent, they run the risk of losing critical talent to competitors, especially among younger employees who will become the next generation of corporate leaders.

The employee perspective on the talent paradox is becoming clear. With the economic uncertainty following the Great Recession, more and more employees see their best career option as developing their skills with their current employer, and they are rewarding companies who are focusing on employee job satisfaction. Download the attached report above to learn more.

Download full report:

www.deloitte.com/assets/Dcom-Global/Local%20Assets/Documents/Human%20Capital/US_Talent2020_September2012_09142012.pdf