Articles, opinion pieces and statistics about Australia's brain drain flood the internet and intermittently appear on back covers of our nations most respected newspapers. It's certainly a topic of hot contention, but is it a real concern for Australian businesses?
Findings from the World Economic Forum's 2016/17 Global Competitiveness report suggest it should be. The research piece that examines the economic competitiveness of nations found that Australia dropped from 21st to 22nd in the last year.
This was thanks mainly to poor performance in business sophistication and innovation – two sectors of our economy driven by our most skilled and talented workers. Logically speaking, these sectors would be most affected by a brain drain. How can your business fight back and hire better talent – and what does corporate health insurance have to do with anything?
The importance of keeping and hiring better talent
When implemented well, the right incentive improves job satisfaction and trust in management.
Your employees are the key to your business's success. No matter how groundbreaking your goods and services, or flawless your skills as manager, it all means nothing if you can't retain and hire better employees.
Jonathan Barouch, Australian founder of Roamz app , spoke to Business Insider about how the talent problem is already affecting our economy.
"It seems crazy to me that we are willing as a nation to sit back and watch our really smart entrepreneurs, engineers, designers, etc… jump on planes to the US to create their companies and technologies overseas when we could be fostering a local community of innovation in Australia."
A solution to the brain drain
The solution to the problem of the Australian brain drain is complex and difficult to solve. However, businesses can put measures in place to minimise the way it affects them. From creating a positive and flexible work environment to conducting more regular pay reviews.
One effective and widely known method is the financial incentive. A recent Harvard study found that when implemented well, the right incentive improves job satisfaction and trust in management (and consequently, employee retention).
Corporate health insurance is an excellent option when it comes to incentivising your employees and attracting new talent. Not only is it affordable, flexible and effective, it benefits your business in two ways – by providing employees with an incentive and by making it easier for them to get the healthcare they need.
At HICA, we specialise in tailoring a corporate health insurance plan specifically to your businesses, so that it doesn't stretch the budget and suits your needs to a tee. To find out more about how corporate health insurance can help you get in touch today.
