The recession and its resulting job losses have provided employers an array of available talent from which to choose. But the recession will end — perhaps soon. And while hiring is expected to lag initially, new hiring will eventually pick back up.

When that happens, employers' days of picking from an endless buffet of skilled and engaged workers will end.

"Clearly, job security is of paramount importance to employees right now," David Smith, managing director of Accenture's Talent & Organization Performance practice in North America, said late last year. "Nevertheless, employers must continue to find ways to improve the work experience for their employees or they may be faced with an unwelcome rise in employee departures when the economy improves."

Over the next year, more than half of employers polled by Robert Half International and CareerBuilder.com plan to hire full-time employees; four in 10 will hire contract, temporary or project workers; and four in 10 will hire part-time employees. That's more competition for companies trying to land top talent.

"Nearly half of workers polled (49 percent) said that after the economy improves, the most effective way to keep them on board will be pay increases," according to an announcement of the two firms' fifth annual Employment Dynamics and Growth Expectations. "Employers seem amenable, with 40 percent stating that increasing pay will be their primary method for retaining top performers."

Yet, when hiring rebounds, pay raises will only go so far toward retaining top talent.

"In addition to competitive pay and benefits, showing a committed investment in the professional development of employees will play a key part in retaining critical talent," according to CareerBuilder CEO Matt Ferguson.

Even in the current economy, with the unemployment situation being what it is, engaging and retaining employees are both top concerns. And while many organizations grapple with the effects of contracting workforces and specialized skills shortages, Accenture has determined that American workers feel they have more to offer their employers than what their current jobs demand of them.

Employees want the opportunity to develop, grow and build a career. Personal growth opportunities enable employees to achieve their goals through their own skill, ability, talent and perseverance. But if employers are not enabling their employees to meet their true potential, that means they're missing out on opportunities to get better business results.

This does not simply entail doubling people's work without any compensation and then saying, "There, you're challenged." Nor is this about saying that having twice the responsibility makes an employee indispensable and this job security is enough to retain good workers (i.e., "You have double the work and should be grateful you still have a job.").

We're beyond the era when simply having a job was enough to satisfy workers. While more than eight in 10 employers feel that their workers are "just happy to have a job," little more than half of employees feel this way, according to a new survey from Monster.com and the research group Human Capital Institute. Downsizing survivors have been given "shoddy treatment...including a lack of communication about layoffs," Lisa Rowan, a human resources and technology analyst at technology research firm IDC, told USA Today this week. Moreover, they've endured "financial hits such as slashed benefits and pay."

The result: "Workers are keeping résumés up to date, attending networking events and watching for the next-best job offer." (Source: USA Today)

Recession or not, the last thing employers want is a disengaged workforce — which is exactly what Jack Welch predicts they will get once the recovery hits. According to Welch and his wife Suzy, hiring managers will face a newly wary workforce.

"When the economy recovers, most companies might, for the first time, have to deal with a candidate pool that's not particularly excited to work for them," Mr. and Mrs. Welch recently wrote at their Web site, The Welch Way.

The solution, according to both the former CEO of General Electric and the former editor of the Harvard Business Review, will be for employers to make their people feel needed and valued:

All they have to do is, well, stop acting like big companies — bureaucratic and impersonal — and start creating a fast-moving and vibrant atmosphere. They'll need to mimic the upside small companies and entrepreneurial ventures offer as a matter of course. Teams will need to be smaller, organizations flatter, and the values of candor, informality and innovation must be baked into the culture. People will need to feel that what they say matters, regardless of rank and title.

Employees want to be enthused by what they do, feel connected to their work and be able to relate to what they do and what they produce. To do that, employees need to feel that their job has worth and purpose. Individual recognition and appreciation are essential to feeling needed and valued. Signs of appreciation for a job particularly well done can make a world of difference for an employee's job satisfaction.

For many organizations struggling to keep their talented employees (never mind maintaining worker efficiency), one of the main problems is failure to communicate. Employers should be going out of their way to get feedback and ideas, both good and bad, from their employees. As IMT noted a couple years ago, "The truth may hurt, but not asking could cause even more pain."

As today's marketplace becomes increasingly conscience-focused, employees are also demanding accountable employers, and to be treated fairly and with respect.

"This recession has left a deep scar on the psyche of working people," the Welches wrote. "Previous recessions came on more slowly, their layoffs occurred more gradually. And previous recessions didn't leave most people blaming business, especially Big Business, for what went wrong.

"Something fundamental in our society has changed, and it will show in how people choose their next jobs," according to the Welches.

Employers typically get in return what they give. To ignore worker disengagement is to foster a corporate culture of total disengagement from what drives growth and excellence.

Related

Are Managers Communicating Enough?

5 Ideas for Maintaining Morale after Layoffs

Why Having Engaged Employees Matters

5 Ideas for Leading through the Downturn

5 Strategies for Managing Employees after Layoffs

Overworked or Burned Out?

8 Things We Want from Work

24 Questions to Ask Employees

Resources

Uncertain Economy Weighs Heavily on US Workers
Accenture, Nov. 13, 2008

Employment Dynamics and Growth Expectations Report
Robert Half International and CareerBuilder.com, Aug. 25, 2009

Annual Study ... Provides Preview of Post-Recession Job Market
Robert Half International and CareerBuilder.com, Aug. 25, 2009

The Employment Situation - July 2009
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Aug. 7, 2009

Survivor Syndrome: Are Those Left in the Office Prone to Bullying?
@Work Blog (Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc., July 7, 2009

To Have and to Hold: Even in Current Economy, Employee Retention Top Concern
Robert Half International, Dec. 17, 2008

Untapped Potential: Half of Female Executives Feel Insufficiently Challenged Despite High Confidence in Skills
Accenture, March 2, 2009

Economic Recovery Gives Frustrated Workers Job Options
by Laura Petrecca and Anita Bruzzese
USA Today, Aug. 31, 2009

Winning Back a Wary Workforce
by Jack and Suzy Welch
The Welch Way / BusinessWeek, July 1, 2009

Failure to Communicate: Lack of Communication With Staff Most Damaging to Morale
Accountemps, Nov. 6, 2008