Poor company values replaces lack of career development as top reason to leave
Despite the recession, three-quarters of executives are likely or very likely to consider a new job opportunity, according to a recent survey.
The 2009 BlueSteps Executive Mobility Survey found the most important factor in an executive’s decision to leave their current employer is poor company values, with 74 per cent of respondents rating this as extremely important, up from 64 per cent in the 2007 survey.
Poor company values has replaced lack of career development as executives’ most pressing concern when deciding to leave a company — 63 per cent of executives voted lack of career development as extremely important in 2009, down from 74 per cent in 2007.
“This openness toward new opportunities during a very difficult and unstable economic climate indicates that executives realize the importance of taking career management into their own hands, and that mobility plays a large part in that. While executives are still concerned with traditional things like professional development and responsibilities, they are also now more concerned than ever with the company culture and values," said Della Giles, Director of BlueSteps.com, an online global database of executives.
The survey of 1,518 executives from around the world found 57 per cent of them expect to work for four to seven organizations by the end of their career and 48 per cent say two years is the shortest tenure an executive can have at an organization without compromising the value of one’s resumé.
This awareness of the negative effects of having too many jobs in too short a time period is echoed by the 82 per cent of respondents who believe working for three organizations in a 10 year period is the maximum to remain credible, up from 68 per cent in 2007.
