KEY POINTS:
A survey of two dozen New Zealand chief executives shows most are expecting profit growth - even though they don't expect the economy to improve.
The Australasian survey, conducted last month by The Executive Connection, included 24 New Zealanders for the first time. Annual turnover of the surveyed CEOs' firms ranged from $5 million to several hundred million.
Of the New Zealanders, 71 per cent expected profit growth even though 88 per cent did not believe economic conditions would improve.
Sixty-six per cent were finding it harder to get staff now than last year.
Only 29 per cent believed that a candidate's potential and ability to train were the most important criteria for hiring goodstaff. The percentage had also dropped in Australia.
"This could be related to the fact that very few new hires are expected to stay more than five years (21 per cent in New Zealand, 30 per cent in Australia). Job transience is increasingly a concern for employers, particularly with regard to those under 35 years."
Results indicated New Zealand businesses were "fairly passive" over headhunting and retaining staff. Nearly 60 per cent said they did not have strategies to poach staff from competitors, and 75 per cent had no strategies to stop their own staff being pinched.
While wanting more pay shared the number one position as the main reason staff left, just 38 per cent of New Zealand CEOs offered improved salary packages to retain people.
