21 Million Workers Plan Job Hunt Next Year

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The job market may still be in the pits, but it’s not enough to keep employees with wandering eyes from thinking that the grass will be greener with a new employer. An estimated 21 million Americans say they are planning to change jobs in the next 12 months, according to a new study. The way they're managed may be to blame.

The cause of this exodus may be rooted in the employee-performance-management process, including the annual performance review ritual that many organizations are going through right now, said Cornerstone OnDemand, a talent-management-software provider that conducted the survey with Harris Interactive. That ritual, many employees believe, is long overdue for an overhaul.

While half of employed U.S. adults told surveyors that they feel more valued by their company when they receive a performance review that is focused on helping them succeed, they said this kind of focus is more the exception than the rule.

During the last six months, only 37 percent of employees surveyed said they had been given useful feedback from their manager/employer. And only one in five (20 percent) said they had established career goals with their manager/employer.

"Managers who simply go through the motions with performance appraisals not only risk employee retention, but also limit the success of the business," said Adam Miller, founder and CEO of Cornerstone OnDemand.  "Performance management should be about developing employees to help them succeed and stay aligned with the goals of the organization. Especially now, at a time when companies are challenged with finding skilled workers, it is important to invest in the training and development of people in order to build strong pools of talent and recruit from within . Employees who have access to training, resources and tools to improve their performance and reach their career goals are happier, more engaged and more empowered to become champions for their company."

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Reach BusinessNewsDaily senior writer Ned Smith at nsmith@techmedianetwork.com. Follow him on Twitter @nedbsmith.