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TORONTO, Oct. 23, 2013 /CNW/ - It's challenging to find great information technology (IT) employees, but keeping them may be even harder, new research from Robert Half Technology suggests. Although most Chief Information Officers (CIOs) recently surveyed (70 percent) rate their workers' satisfaction levels fairly high, more than one-third (35 percent) of IT workers polled said they plan to look for another job in the next year, and another 35 percent are unsure about whether they'll stay. Chief contributing factors to IT workers' search for greener pastures are the need for new challenges and a lack of career advancement potential.

The CIO survey was developed by Robert Half Technology, a leading provider of IT professionals on a project and full-time basis, and conducted by an independent research firm. The survey is based on more than 270 telephone interviews with CIOs from a random sample of Canadian companies with 100 or more employees. The IT worker survey was developed and conducted by Robert Half Technology, and the responses are from more than 7,500 IT workers from across North America who participated in a web survey.

CIOs were asked, "How satisfied do you think your firm's IT workers are on a scale from 1 to 5, with 1 being the least satisfied and 5 being the most satisfied?" Their responses:

*Numbers do not total 100 percent due to rounding.

IT workers were asked, "Do you plan to look for a new job next year?" Their responses:

IT workers also were asked, "If you plan to look for a job next year, what are your primary motivations for leaving your current firm?" Their top three responses*:

*Top three responses shown. Multiple responses allowed.

"Developing and maintaining an effective retention strategy is in the best interest of employers," said Megan Slabinski, District President of Robert Half Technology's Canadian operations.  "Top performers with specialized skills are making significant contributions, helping their companies operate more efficiently and competitively."

"As we continue to see shortages for skilled IT professionals, CIOs should ensure that a solid career pathing plan is in place for their top employees," Slabinski added.

Robert Half Technology offers employers these five tips to retain their best and brightest:

1. Pay competitively. Salary isn't the only key to job satisfaction, but underpaying technology professionals will prompt them to seek other career opportunities.
2. Offer new responsibilities. Top performers want to advance. Even when you can't give a promotion, offer new areas of responsibility -- the best IT pros want to continually build their skill sets.
3. Create a learning culture. Reimburse staff for relevant online classes, educational conferences and courses offered by professional associations or local colleges. If employees seek IT certifications, consider reimbursing them for the costs to obtain and maintain their credentials. If your firm doesn't have the budget to pay for classes, consider starting a mentoring program.
4. Provide attractive benefits. Ask technology professionals what perks they want -- from health plans to flexible work hours to paid time off - and do your best to deliver them.
5. Address burnout proactively. Promoting realistic workloads, bringing in project professionals when full-time employees are at capacity, and tackling morale issues immediately can help prevent employees from feeling overburdened and stressed.

About Robert Half Technology
With more than 100 locations worldwide, Robert Half Technology is a leading provider of technology professionals for initiatives ranging from web development and multiplatform systems integration to network security and technical support. Robert Half Technology offers online job search services at www.rht.com.

SOURCE Robert Half Technology