The search of talent and securing the best-in-class expertise has been long going on. But lately, it is being seen that the big companies are not only up against direct competitors of the industry they are in, but it is the start-ups too they have competition from.
According to a new report from Robert Walters – Act Like a Start-Up and Win the Best Talent – nearly 50% of employees across the globe would prefer working in a start-up over the stability and assurance of being employed by a large and established company.
Employees are now re-thinking how they want to work and have more control of how their work empowers them. With the uncertainty and the ripples of pandemic still being seen, large corporates are now facing more challenges in attracting and retaining top talent.
There has been a 20% increase in headcount growth within start-ups over the past 12 months, with more predicted as over 50% of workers vow to make their next move to a start-up. It shows that today’s professionals are looking for more than just a big brand, big money and basic employee benefits. They want to be a part of a place where they can add value, thrive in a culture of innovation, creativity and most importantly see a visible career growth.
The career accelerator
With relatively flat structures and hands-on founders and CEOs with start-ups – new starters can find themselves lining into the senior leadership team from day one.
Start-up leaders can usually see an employee’s involvement in a project right from initial stages until completion and as a result, the rate of career advancement at start-ups tends to be higher. Over half of the professionals (55%) were willing to join a start-up if they saw an opportunity to progress much quicker than they would within a corporate set-up.
Potential for learning
The changing and fast-paced nature of a start-up keeps employees on their toes, encourages them to develop new skills as they go and push boundaries beyond the initial job description. While working for a start-up, one can understand how the whole company works and develop commercial acumen which is generally not expected when in junior positions in corporate structures.
Putting the ‘I’ in innovation
Start-ups are different from traditional businesses primarily because they are grounded on disruptive innovation, created to address a perceived ‘problem’ in the market. Joining a start-up means adopting an ‘out of the box’ mindset – an ability to think on one’s feet and get creative with small budgets and less resources. In fact, 47% of the professionals surveyed expressed they would leave a corporate job to join a newly established business for the scope of innovation it brings.