Quick Handbook for Internal Mobility

The attrition has hiked by 20%, and the recruiting cost per position is over $4000.

 

It could be because of the stiff market, job-hoppers, or the great resignation, but what if your recruitment approach is wrong?

One of the major reasons employees move on to another organization is the limited growth opportunity they see in the current one.

So, is there a way to provide those opportunities by moving the talent within the organization?

In this article, we’ll see what internal mobility is and which strategies to follow to implement it effectively.

What is Internal Mobility?

Internal mobility is the employee's movement to new roles and responsibilities within an organization. This movement can be vertical, which means they have progressed on the ladder through their skills and understanding. The job title of a person will change in this case.

Or the movement can be lateral, which is taking on additional work or managing a new department but at the same designation.

In either case, the employee comes across new challenges and learnings that upskill him and motivate him to work in the organization.

 

 PWC Report

It might seem easier just to hire new people for an open position but think about it for a second. Even if the candidate isn’t that capable and needs thorough training to understand the company and the role, you’ll still be offering him a 15-25% salary hike.

Instead, it’s better to engage your current talent and allow them to relearn and reskill themselves. It will also help the organization grow. Let’s see how.

How does internal mobility help an organization?

1) Improves Employee Retention

66% of employees look for opportunities within their current organization before moving elsewhere.

If employees are unhappy with their career progression, they will not stay with you.

“We think looking at the workforce as people in boxes is holding people and organizations back in a big way. Companies that are serious about business agility need to start seeing their workforces at the skill level and leaning into new ways to bring skills fluidly to where they’re needed to solve real business problems” - Brian Hershey

Many recruiters forget that they already have a skilled workforce with them. All the recruiters have to do is bring the right opportunities to those people.

2) Save Time and Cost

Hiring someone new to the team isn’t easy. That’s why recruiters spend 42 days on average to fill an open position.

Meanwhile, your team’s productivity suffers, and so does your company revenue.

Internal mobility allows quick hiring, and since you already know the employee, the possibility of a bad hire gets reduced significantly.

3) Build Good Employer Brand

An organization is recognized as a good place to work if it acknowledges the needs of an employee and functions to improve the overall job satisfaction level.

If you check these list items, you can expect to attract new talent through referrals or word of mouth.

Internal mobility allows you to ensure a better work culture focused on learning skills and implementing them irrespective of the employee’s department. You can’t overlook this critical factor if you want to retain and draw the top talents to your organization.

 

5 Best Practices For a Smoother Internal Mobility

1) Design and Implement an Internal Mobility Program

To start mobilizing your team internally, first, you need to create a healthy culture around it.

Here’s how you can do it.

1) Identify the existing workforce, their skills, and the open positions.

2) Draft guidelines and policies on how internal mobility will work across the organization.

3) Educate the whole team about the mobility program to allow a fair chance for everyone.

4) Ask employees if they are willing to explore new responsibilities if allowed to swap jobs, shadow another team member, or adopt a cross-team project.

2) Empower Your Managers

 

Whenever an employee wishes to shift their departments or role, their first point of contact is their manager. Therefore, it makes absolute sense to start streamlining your processes from there onward.

Here are some ways you can take care of it.

1) Educate your managers about the internal mobility policies so that they can share complete knowledge with the employee whenever required.

2) Coach them on how to talk to the employee to understand the reasons for internal mobilization.

3) Often managers take the employee's request for internal shifting personally and might consider it a form of betrayal. Train them in behavioral science to look at the situation from a neutral point of view.

4) Advise the managers about the next steps they have to follow to report the request so that the HR professional can take it forward.

3) Audit the Skills Available In-house

You might be sitting on a gold mine of talent but still have no idea how to utilize it.

Every employee learns and adds specific skills from when they have joined you. And it could be precisely what you’re looking for in an open position. But until you set up a system to spot talent, you won’t be able to use it.

1) Design skill tests that any employee across the organization can attempt.

2) Use internal job postings (IJP) to invite existing employees to try for an open position.

3) Use skill assessment metrics for an unbiased and uniform selection process.

4) Educate the whole organization on how to apply for an internal job posting.

4) Create Career Paths for Employees

“Millennials (in the tech sector) today on average switch jobs every 1.8 years. I think that has to do with the fact that leaders in those companies don’t set clear expectations that their jobs will change. When it doesn’t, and you have really talented people, they will move on to the next challenge. I think it’s like a forcing function. You should force it.” - Daniel Ek, Spotify

Employees aren’t always looking for better hikes or benefits when switching jobs. They look for a better career trajectory too. Provide that in your organization and see how it’ll impact your employee retention and productivity.

 

LinkedIn Workforce Report

How to invest in your employee’s career?

1)]Conduct one-on-one sessions to understand their career expectations and aspirations. Use a carefully drafted survey that asks the right questions.

2) See if they are interested in learning a new skill that can help their career.

3) Introduce a mentorship program where employees can seek guidance from professionals and coaches.

4) Bring industry experts to talk about career growth and answer your team’s questions.

5) Make L&D a Priority

L&D, or Learning and Development, is a crucial aspect of employee growth strategy. In today’s competitive world, if your team isn’t keeping up, then it directly impacts the company’s success.

1) Introduce a portal where employees can sign in to access resources to upskill.

2) Educate the team on the importance of learning throughout their career.

3) Add courses or reading material considering all teams and interests.

4) Gamify the portal for promoting the use and building engagement.

 

LinkedIn Workforce Report

What’s Next?

Internal mobility is not just about filling open positions. It’s a long-term investment that, if done right, can help you build a profitable business with happier employees.

Remember that your finest hires are already working in your company.

And successful internal mobility requires sophisticated technology. Rippehire is the best bet that provides effective solutions for talent acquisition and employee referral through an easy-to-use platform. Try it out to see how it can help you get the best talent right now.