Influence of learning and working climate on the retention of talented employees

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to investigate the influence of employee and organizational factors, such as learning and working climate, on the retention of talented employees. Design/methodology/approach – A questionnaire was administered to 972 employees. Explorative factor analysis was performed to reduce the number of variables and to look for underlying constructs in the data. Secondly, using multiple stepwise regression analysis the influence of the factors on retention was examined. Thirdly, ANOVA’s were calculated to compare retention in different kinds of groups of employees. Findings – Retention was reflected by two factors, namely ‘intention to stay’ and ‘intention to leave’. Results showed the significant influence of learning and working climate on worker’s intention to stay. The learning and working climate also had an influence on the intention to leave, although less substantive. Other predictors of intention to stay were age, leadership skills, learning attitude and creativity, and the use of procedures within the organisation. In order to predict the intention to leave, learning attitude and creativity were excluded from the regression model. ANOVA’s only revealed differences for ‘high potentials’ and seniority regarding the intention to stay. Originality/value – This research has shown that learning and working climate has a significant influence on employee’s intention to stay and in a lesser amount on intention to leave. The influence of learning and working climate on retention of talented employees should therefore not be underestimated.