what drives talent in the business administration and operations sector.

When it comes to the top drivers for respondents in Randstad’s employer brand research (REBR) survey, AI adoption, equity, retention trends and economic conditions were the four key themes.

The research provides valuable insights for employers on how to shape their brands to attract and retain top talent. Globally, REBR surveyed nearly 173,000 people and more than 6,000 companies. The research is a reflection of employer attractiveness for the U.S. market’s largest employers. Specifically in the U.S., more than 5,000 people were surveyed.

In the business administration and operations sector, 194 respondents shared thoughts on the four themes.

All of the themes are connected in one way or another. For example, respondents feel they need to adapt to AI and learn how to leverage it in their work to stay relevant in the workplace. That being said, of the respondents, less than 10 percent said they use it every day in their work. And nearly 50 percent said they have never used it.

AI adoption

For business administration and operations professionals, AI could be the future — in one way or another. There are mixed feelings about the impact of AI, AI tools and other technologies as they enter the workplace. Innovation that is seen as helping to reskill and upskill these business professionals is more favored. There is some fear that AI will replace their jobs and the quest to stay relevant and attractive to employers is real.

talent leaders weigh in on AI

In the 2024 Randstad Enterprise Talent Trends research, which surveyed 1,076 C-suite and human capital leaders in 21 markets around the globe, employers have grown more concerned about their ability to get the skills their business needs to thrive in today’s challenging environments. The adoption of AI is accelerating across the talent life cycle.

Ways to lean in:

enable technology

Explore and understand the ways in which technology can make the formerly impossible possible when it comes to your talent strategies.

talent capability

Embrace the beyond-skills revolution, rethink the way you hire and develop talent throughout their career journeys with a particular emphasis on aspiration, what work is core and impactful, and how you can get more of your workforce into a state of constant flow.

empower experiences

Build cultures and people experiences that not only meet talent expectations, but also keep your people highly engaged with a willingness to display sustained discretionary effort.

talent retention trends

Changing jobs is not uncommon. Sometimes it’s how people earn a better paycheck, get a much-needed promotion or broaden their skill set. But how often does it happen in the business administration and operations roles? First, it depends on the demographic. The REBR responses tell us that younger workers like Gen Z and Gen X are more apt to switch jobs and do it more often. The days of working at one employer for your entire career seem to be long gone.

A few nuggets:

• In 2023, in the business administration and operations sector and for all age demographics, about 21 percent of respondents changed jobs. The expectation in 2024 to change jobs for this same group was 24 percent.
• For Gen Z, about 27 percent switched jobs in 2023 and about 31 percent plan to this year.
• Only about 9 percent of Gen Xers changed jobs in 2023 and about 13 percent plan to change jobs this year.
• Again the Gen Z and Gen X respondents were aligned for their reason and it’s to preserve or gain a better work-life balance.
• Baby Boomers and older workers cite receiving any offer they could not refuse as the top reason for the job switch.
• For all age sectors, a consistent top five reason for leaving was: too low compensation due to the rising cost of living.

What does this intel tell us? Work-life balance continues to matter. Pay is also a factor for all age groups but stability for older workers is important and plays a key role in decision making.

career development valued

From where business administration and operations professionals sit, they value career development and the opportunity to reskill. The REBR revealed that about 35 percent of respondents in 2024 feel they are given enough opportunity to develop in their current roles.

The importance of having the opportunity to reskill is evident as that percentage from respondents in 2024 was about 42 percent, up 10 percent from 2023. Clearly the idea of staying in a role where they can grow and flourish is preferred.

impact of economic conditions

The market is unpredictable and inflation, labor costs and the rising cost of living have people carefully looking at their paychecks and overall compensation packages. Business administration and operations respondents were asked in what way is your company financially supporting you to help cope with these rising costs?

• About 31 percent said their salary raise covered part of the rising costs.
• Almost 30 percent said they received nothing to assist with rising costs.
• Just over 27 percent said their salary increase covered the rising costs.
• Almost 4 percent reported receiving a one-time lump sum to assist with rising costs.

the importance of equity

EDI&A (equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility) is a part of every company and the efforts to be inclusive and embrace differences don’t go unnoticed. Companies who invest, grow and protect their brand and reputation.

According to the REBR results, overall and for all sectors, American employers are doing fairly well on equity. About 48 percent of Americans identify as a minority, a proportion notably higher than in other markets. Males and younger generations tend to rate their current employer more positively, while Baby Boomers express the least satisfaction with equity in their current workplace. Minorities and non-minorities generally rate their current employer the same, except for when it comes to equal opportunity hiring, where minorities are more critical.

In the business administration and operations sector, equity also resonates with respondents. If you break down the sector into female and then everyone else, here’s where it stands:

• About 62 percent feel their organization values their unique attributes, characteristics, skills, experience and background. For females, that number drops to about 55 percent.
• When asked if senior managers are fair when it comes to hiring or career advancement, about 59 percent of the respondents agree. About 56 percent of the female respondents agree.
• In terms of if senior managers are fair when it comes to reskilling and upskilling opportunities, about 60 percent of the respondents agree and just 50 percent of the female respondents.

What does this data tell us? While progress has been made when it comes to equity, the perception and sometimes reality is, we have work to continue to do.

why people leave

Improving work-life balance has taken the top spot as a reason people leave an employer more since 2019 and the pandemic. This year is no different. People have gotten used to having more time at home, at outside-of-work activities and proven work still gets done and they are happier and healthier. Companies that lean into this have success at retaining and recruiting top talent.