South Yorkshire Chambers of Commerce Launch The People Survey to Assess Recruitment and Staff Retention Trends

Organisations across the region are now being asked to share their experiences of both recruitment and staff retention, in response to a questionnaire that is being conducted by the three South Yorkshire Chambers of Commerce.

Having initially launched around this time last year, The People Survey is being run once again to gauge whether or not the situation has improved much for employers over the past twelve months, and to observe any new trends that may be developing.

Among other things, the form asks searching questions about how long vacancies are being left unfilled, what strategies & incentives are currently being used to retain staff, and the necessity of increasing salaries for new starters. Equipped with these valuable insights, the three South Yorkshire Chambers — those being the ones for Barnsley & Rotherham Chamber of Commerce, Doncaster Chamber and Sheffield Chamber of Commerce — will then be better placed to represent the business community on all of these pressing issues.

Feeding into the nationwide Quarterly Economic Survey (QES), the poll also asks organisations a number of standardized questions, pertaining to the state of the economy and overall business conditions. For instance, there are sections on cash flow, turnover, capacity, and price pressures, all of which are repeated in every single iteration of the QES. Meanwhile, there is also an opportunity for respondents to explain what more their local authority and national government could be doing to supporting them during these uncertain times.

Encouraging businesses to take The People Survey, the respective Chief Execs for the three South Yorkshire Chambers issued the following joint statement: “Last time that we ran The People Survey, we discovered that a staggering 89% of businesses —  that were trying to recruit at the time —  were experiencing difficulties. We know that this is a perennial struggle of course, which is why we have decided to circle back around and ask those very same questions again, in order to see if the situation has improved or worsened.

“With that in mind, it is important that organisations take the time to have their say here and to articulate their own experiences. The findings from this survey will enable us to understand the major obstacles that the private sector is facing right now and to really get under the bonnet of this complicated issue.

“As representatives of the business community, we always strive to amplify the voice of South Yorkshire employers and will lobby for meaningful change on their behalf.

“In fact, just last week we published our Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP), which outlines 36 practical recommendations for how the skills system in our region can be changed to better meet the needs of employers. We were only able to produce that document with the help of businesses, who kindly shared their insights with us and engaged in the consultation process.

“Their input was instrumental in the creation of the LSIP, and we are asking for it again now with the People Survey, so that we can better understand the issues that organisations are facing when it comes to recruitment and retention. We need as many responses as possible to this questionnaire and it only takes about 10 minutes to complete, yet every single form completed counts.

“As part of the national Quarterly Economic Survey, the results will not only be analyzed by ourselves but also by our umbrella body the British Chamber of Commerce (BCC) and will be closely watched by policymakers as well. So it’s important that they’re hearing from South Yorkshire.”