Survey predicts the proportion of the workforce that will move in 2017

A survey by the talent management and recruitment consultancy, Fastnet, reveals that 44% of employees are likely to move jobs in the coming 18 months.

It comes as more than three quarters of employers said that retention of staff was critical to their businesses.

Company co-founder and managing partner Niamh O’Driscoll said: "The Fastnet survey reveals that when it comes to retaining skilled employees, employers need to invest in talent acquisition, pipeline and management.

Of the employers surveyed, 77% said that employee retention was critical to their business, with over half stating that they would expect an employee to stay with their company for 5-6 years.

"With 44% of employees expecting to move jobs in the year ahead, employers must understand the importance of attracting, developing and retaining the best talent, and we are seeing that first hand through our work with clients at Fastnet - The Talent Group."

The survey shows that a clear career development path in a role is very important to both male and female staff, ranking above better financial remuneration.

However, men were far more likely to be motivated by a performance related bonus (34%) compared to women (16%).

It also found that multinationals were ranked as the most attractive workplace in Ireland.

More than double the number of employees would prefer to work for a start-up company rather than work in the public sector and not-for-profit organisations.

Employers and employees also have very different opinions on the use of performance management tools, according to the survey.

Almost half the employees surveyed question the effectiveness of the performance tool used by their company, while 83% of companies surveyed believed that performance management tools used currently were effective.

Ms O’Driscoll said: "This disconnect in performance measurement reveals an important clue for HR professionals.

"It may signal the need to review current performance tools and look to more agile, coaching-style performance measurement systems."