PRICEWATERHOUSECOOPERS (PWC): Majority of business leaders believe pandemic becomes endemic by the end of 2022, according to PwC Survey

By Press release submission

Jan 31, 2022

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) issued the following announcement on Jan. 27.

Nearly 70% of business leaders believe that COVID-19 will turn from pandemic to endemic in 2022, but many expect that inflation will remain elevated throughout the year according to the results of the latest PwC Pulse Survey: Executive views on business in 2022. Additionally, the more than 650 C-suite executives surveyed cited the ability to hire and retain talent as both the most important factor (77%) and biggest risk (48%) in reaching their organizations’ growth goals in 2022.

Even as business leaders recognize the importance talent has in achieving growth this year, they are less optimistic on the current labor market, with only 36% believing that voluntary turnover will return to the pre-pandemic rate by the end of the year, and only 31% believing that talent shortages will ease by the end of 2022. Notably, board members view talent management as a top issue, with 73% planning to devote more time to workforce and diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) efforts.

To combat this, business leaders plan to keep a number of initiatives to retain and attract talent, including offering hybrid work options for employees (43%), increasing career advancement and upskilling opportunities (36%), increasing compensation for employees (31%), making remote work a permanent option (30%) and improving benefits for employees (30%). See ‘key survey results’ below for further details.

“As employers look to attract and retain critical talent, they’re shifting their investment into their employees – creating meaningful work opportunities, investing in learning and upskilling, and creating career advancement opportunities – all while providing new flexible working options to meet employee personal needs,” said Julia Lamm, PwC Workforce Transformation Principal. “2022 will be an important year for employers to build trust between employers and employees, as they seek to stabilize their teams and position for growth.”

Original source can be found here.