How an EOR Platform Helps You Retain Your Talent Pool

The impact of the brain drain on the South African economy

It is estimated that by 2020, over 900,000 South African citizens had relocated to other countries, up from 786,554 in 2015. Of notable concern is the increasing number of young, highly skilled individuals leaving the country, with forecasts indicating that South Africa could lose up to half of its university graduates in years to come. In Playroll's recently released white paper on South Africa's Brain Drain, key insights surrounding the brain drain were unearthed.

• Almost 80% of South African business leaders regard emigration of top talent as a critical risk factor for their business.
• Young and qualified professionals between the age of 25 - 40 are more likely to seek employment abroad.
• Australia, Portugal and the United Kingdom are the top three countries South African's are choosing to relocate to.

Expert panel to tackle the South African brain drain head on

Realising the need for practical solutions to tackle the ongoing brain drain, Playroll, a global Employer of Record platform, hosted an exclusive roundtable discussion in collaboration with AIM’s South Africa, facilitated by Mandy Wiener. The event featured an esteemed panel of HR experts and business leaders, including Elsa Tshtedi from Nedbank, Simonetta Guiricich from Playroll, Leonie Pentz from AIMS South Africa and Vanessa Raath, Global Talent Sourcing Trainer. Solutions and strategies for businesses to retain their top talent amidst the ongoing talent exodus were unearthed.

In an engaging 60-minute conversation, panelists debated the problem of the brain drain and agreed that despite the challenges, feasible solutions exist to mitigate the impact of talent loss on South African businesses. According to Vantage Circle, the average employee exit costs 16% to 213% of their annual salary depending on their pay, these costs include the costs of time, training of their replacement, as well as, the cost of productivity loss during this period. In this panel, our experts discussed their top strategies to driving talent retention for a business.

3 Talent Retention strategies all South African businesses should know

Hiring exceptional talent is difficult enough; however, retaining them has unearthed a new challenge for HR leaders. Employees no longer feel the need to serve companies, which do not meet their needs. With this in mind, here are three ways your business can drive employee retention, that actually work:

1. Skills Development and Transfer: A renewed focus on skills transfer and employee training is the cornerstone of an effective retention strategy. Commitment to upskilling employees at all levels of an organisation, builds a more diverse pool of talent with vital skills that can reduce the disruption caused by emigration.
2. Workplace Flexibility: Considering that flexible and fluid work arrangements are leading priorities for today's global workforce, fostering a flexible workplace can work to attract and retain business critical skills. Companies that offer their workforce flexibility and the freedom to work remotely are less likely to hemorrhage rare talent.
3. Supporting Key Talent: Supporting an employees personal aspirations and professional development plans is an effective retention strategy that can elevate overall satisfaction. Implementing systems to enhance support for key talent, including regular engagement with leadership, can foster a better sense of appreciation and belonging that is less lively to lead to talent loss.

Simonetta Guiricich, Chief Operating Officer at Playroll, delivered a reassuring message, "there is hope, amidst the challenges of relocation. With the power of employer of record platforms, businesses no longer have to say goodbye to their top talent".

Big businesses are using Playroll to mitigate the brain drain in South Africa.

Businesses are now looking to Employer of Record solutions like Playroll to retain talent amidst the brain drain. Historically South African employers seeking to retain talent or move and source talent abroad, had to learn about locally relevant labour and compliance regulations, making the process cumbersome and costly. As a result, relocation was almost-always recognised as the end of the employee/employer relationship.  

With progressive approaches and tools like that of Playroll, companies can now seamlessly and effectively manage a global workforce while continuing with business as usual.

5 Ways Playroll helps you retain your talent pool.

1. You do not need to set up a local business entity, Playroll support's your hiring in 180 countries, while saving you administrative and legal costs.
2. Hire in a new country within days of enrolment. Playroll set up is typically done within 1-3 days, and you can hire right away.
3. Multiple employment methods in one system. Whether your hiring hourly, freelance, contractors or a new FTE - Playroll streamlines onboarding and contractual processes to make managing a distributed workforce, easy.
4. Spend less time on payroll, with Playroll you can hire, pay, and manage your global workforce in one place with one bulk payment; we'll handle the hard stuff like tax deductions, pensions, local currencies, benefits and government fees.
5. Real humans providing human centric support and a 99.9% uptime guarantee. All Playroll customers are provided dedicated customer success managers with 24/7 support - we put our money where our mouth is. We are a customer centric platform, meaning your employees and their issues are our primary objective, ensuring employee issue resolution within hours not days.

Not supporting international hiring is costing your business. With Playroll, stay competitive and retain your talent; while focusing on what matters most, the business of your business. Interested in learning how Playroll can help you retain key talent?