Companies that viewed the recession as a way to retain top workers should switch gears if they expect to hold on to valued employees, a consultant said April 30 at the 2013 WorldatWork  Total Rewards Conferencein Philadelphia.

While economic turmoil kept people in place for the past few years, more employees are now actively seeking or switching to new jobs, putting companies at a risk for a talent drain, said Robin Erickson, specialist manager at Deloitte Consulting. A survey of employees and executives was the basis for a Deloitte report, Talent Edge 2020, which examined talent-market trends in the coming decade.

The cost of turnover is not well understood, especially the incidental costs, Erickson said.  66 percent of surveyed executives actually believe that voluntary turnover will increase their company’s “profitability,” she said.

The survey also found that companies were having difficulty filling certain positions, often because they were looking for people who had every talent and skill they wanted for a position, Erickson said. The result, she said, was that hiring was not carried out until such a candidate was found.

Companies should examine what programs are in place to retain desired talent and evaluate overall talent, said  Gregory A. Stoskopf, director at Deloitte Consulting. “You can’t design a retention plan in a vacuum; it has to be part of your overall talent strategy,” he said.

Employees are concerned about compensation and rewards, but seven of the top 10 job-related concerns uncovered in the Deloitte survey were not financial, Stoskopf said. Employees indicated a strong interest in career paths, experiencing challenges in job,  and having flexible work arrangements. Similarly, the top reason cited for leaving a job is the lack of career progress.

The findings indicated that retaining talent requires more than a raise or bonus pay, but a career path, mentoring, and additional training, Stoskopf said.