Universum, leading employer branding specialists, part of IrishJobs, today published new research that showed Irish semi-state and public bodies are the most attractive employers for professionals working in Ireland.
The Most Attractive Employers Index 2023, which was conducted among over 8,800 professionals in Ireland working in Business/Economics, IT, Engineering, Natural Sciences, Humanities, Law, and Medicine, reveals shifts in the different employer attributes valued by professionals. The Index also shows changes in the most desired employers for professionals across Ireland, with well-established semi-states and public sector organisations becoming more popular and multinationals in the technology sector declining in popularity.
Competitive Benefits
Results reveal that competitive benefits are one of the fastest-rising attributes that professionals look for in potential employers. Competitive benefits increased in importance, up one place to 8th, following a rise of 5 places last year. With unemployment close to a record low and significant competition for talent, this suggests professional priorities are moving to examine employer offerings beyond financial compensation.
Business
Semi-state and public bodies make up 6 out of the 10 most attractive employers among Business professionals and have made significant gains on last year, including Enterprise Ireland moving from 18th to 8th place, the Central Bank of Ireland increasing 6 positions from 15th to 9th, the Department of Education/Teaching moving from 14th to 10th place and An Post moving from 7th to 4th.
The Civil Service holds 2nd place among Business professionals as well as featuring in the top 10 employers across all professional disciplines. The Health Service Executive (HSE) is another employer that ranks highly across multiple disciplines, moving from 6th to 3rd among Business professionals.
Some technology multinationals have experienced significant falls in this year’s Index, with several large companies falling outside the top twenty employers among Business professionals for the first time in several years, including Facebook falling from 4th place to 28th, LinkedIn from 9th to 13th, and Microsoft from 10th to 21st. Google maintained 1st place among Business professionals.
The financial services and professional services sectors performed well among Business professionals. The insurance sector was particularly strong, with Irish Life rising 13 places and Vhi Healthcare up 11 places. The banking sector also made gains, with Bank of Ireland up nine places to 12th position and Permanent TSB rising 9 places.
IT Sector
Technology multinationals experience some of the biggest shifts in popularity among IT professionals, with Facebook falling from 5th to 17th and LinkedIn dropping 13 places to 24th Microsoft maintained its high ranking, with a modest drop from 1st to 2nd position, while Google rose one place to take 1st position. New entrant TikTok performed well, taking 7th position among IT professionals.
Semi-state and public bodies formed 3 of the top 10 employers among IT professionals, with the HSE rising from 7th to 5th, An Post rising from 9th to 6th and the Civil Service taking 8th position. Professional services firms become considerably more popular for those pursuing an IT career, with Deloitte rising 10 places to 23rd position and KPMG increasing 33 places to 35th position. Banks are also notable movers in IT, with Bank of Ireland up seven places to 15th, alongside JP Morgan which rose 14 places.
Engineering
The Electricity Supply Board (ESB) is the most popular employer among engineering professionals, moving up three positions from 4th in 2022. The Civil Service moves from 11th to 5th in the Engineering sector. There were significant falls for technology companies in the Engineering sector, with Facebook slipping from 14th to 42nd, Apple falling from 8th to 16th and Intel falling from 2nd to 8th.
Employer attributes
Results reveal that Competitive base salary, work-life balance, and secure employment are the top three attributes that professionals look for in an employer. Secure employment rises from fourth position last year, indicating the value professionals are putting on stability in light of economic uncertainty and sectoral-specific layoffs. Flexible working conditions are in 4th place, down one position from last year, reflecting the fundamental role that hybrid working continues to play in the changing world of work. Respect for people completes the top five attributes.
Other attributes that have risen in importance include Opportunities to make a personal impact, up six places on last year, team-orientated work up four places, and attractive products and services, up three places in 2022. Meanwhile, factors that fell significantly in importance since 2022 include Recognising performance, down seven places, challenging work, down five places and high-future earnings, falling four places.
Preferences differ somewhat when examined by gender. Women value work-life balance above all else, followed by flexible working conditions and competitive base salary. Men tend to put a higher value on finances and security, with competitive base salary ranked 1st, followed by work-life balance and secure employment.
Commenting on the results of the research, Steve Ward, UK and Ireland Business Director, Universum, said:
“With the employment rate in Ireland close to a historic high, the competition for talent among organisations is significant. To succeed in this tight labour market, employers need to closely observe changing trends in the preferences of talent and adapt their talent strategy accordingly. The Most Attractive Employers Index provides a critical insight into these trends, revealing the companies and attributes mostly highly valued by professionals across Ireland.
Macroeconomic factors are having a clear impact on how talent views potential employers. With considerable economic uncertainty and volatility across the globe, professionals increasingly value Irish public and semi-state sector organisations that provide greater stability and resilience against these changes. Meanwhile, the significant drop in popularity of some multinationals in the technology sector is also likely a feature of this economic backdrop, exacerbated by the layoffs across the sector over the past 18 months.”