“Sustaining intersectionality” - a key driver to bolster company culture?

Specialist professional recruitment firm Robert Walters Japan revealed findings from its "Salary Survey 2023" on 15 February, suggesting companies should delve into countering the demotivators that employees are grappling with as they consider a new career move. In addition to “to increase my salary” and “to progress my career” both at 51%, “time for a change and do something new” (39%) & “poor company culture” (27%) also ranked among the top reasons why employees surveyed are not satisfied and lack creativity and stimulation at work, leading them to seek new opportunities.

“Time for a change” & “Poor company culture” among top demotivators for employees surveyed to look for new opportunities 

So, what can companies do begin to rectify this? Robert Walters’ studies show that “sustaining intersectionality”, i.e. diversifying a company’s talent makeup generationally, culturally and in terms of gender, might be a key factor in bolstering company culture and drive fresh creativity and productivity among employees.

More than 60% of 20s and 30s employees appreciate senior employees to bring wealth of experience and knowledge in the workplace

In a Robert Walters Candidate Survey on “Working beyond retirement age” (August 2022) when asked what the benefits are of having senior employees over 60 years old, the most common response across all age groups was that they have a wealth of experience and knowledge. This was especially appreciated by those in their 20s and 30s (64%). Other common responses included “they are well-connected and can introduce business partners” and “they possess a broader view of the overall business.”

Working with international talent to breathe “creativity and stimulation at work” among Japanese nationals

In another Robert Walters Candidate Survey on foreign employees in Japan (October 2022), it was found the top positive factors for Japanese employees with regard to working with international talent were: “opportunity to experience different cultures” (28%), “seeing Japanese and international talent as the same” (26%) and “diverse ways of thinking led to new ideas” (21%) which shows a potential to boost creativity and productivity in the workplace and thereby could be viewed as a retention strategy to counteract the demotivators deterring employees for looking for new opportunities beyond their current role.

53% of organizations surveyed engage with recruitment firms to make their hiring strategy more inclusive

Finally, Robert Walters Japan’s Salary Survey 2023 data showed the top hiring strategy for 53% of organizations was to engage with recruitment firms, followed by “increase time to hire” (41%) and “change interview practices” (37%). In times of growing economic uncertainty, Japan still faces a severe talent shortage projected to continue into 2023 with a national job-offer-ratio average of 1.28 for 2022 (Source: Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.)

(Survey period: October to November 2022, Target: Domestic and foreign-affiliated companies in Japan n=196; Company employees registered with Robert Walters Japan and living in Japan n=864)

Press Release(PDF)

About Robert Walters Japan:

Established in London, United Kingdom, in 1985, Robert Walters is a specialist recruitment consultancy with operations in 31 countries around the world. Robert Walters Japan established its Tokyo office in 2000 and Osaka office in 2007.  For over 20 years, we've been a driving force in the Japanese bilingual recruitment market, providing high quality candidates for our clients and access to the best jobs. Our consultants are experts in their respective industries and work in teams to provide recruitment consultation services across a wide range of industries and job categories.

Press contact:
PR & Communications, Robert Walters Japan 
Phone: 03-4570-1500
E-mail:info@robertwalters.co.jp