Executive focus shifts to recruiting skilled workers

Accenture's global survey of senior management finds their number one priority this year is to attract and retain skilled employees, a shift from last year's focus on customer retention.

While customers still occupied some of the top spots, workforce improvement issues dominated the top priorities for 425 senior executives, said this 2005 survey of companies in eight countries. More than a third of those surveyed said attracting and retaining skilled staff was at the top of their list, exactly the same number of votes given to "acquiring new customers" last year. Coming in second was "changing organizational cultural and employee attitudes." Other issues in the top ten were "improving workforce performance" and "developing employees into capable leaders." "The most powerful theme emerging," said Accenture's Peter Cheese, "is a strong and consistent focus on people."

# 20402 Press release, ACCENTURE, 7-28-05

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