Creating a work environment where the most talented staff want to stay The forthcoming Institute of Personnel and Development annual recruitment and selection conference, which takes place at Novotel London West on Tuesday, sets out to find ways in which human resource professionals can respond to increasingly demanding workforces. As the need to retain and recruit talent becomes ever more pressing, so the demands expressed by staff reflect their clear expectations and aspirations. Many are seeking the opportunity to learn, to train and to have space in which to contribute to their organisation. And the talented elite will move to other employers who will provide those avenues, should they not be available in their present positions. Recent research published by the IPD confirmed ­ should anyone have doubted it ­ that the idea of a job for life is dead. Nearly 70% of those polled said it was acceptable to change jobs every five years. And 40% thought that under the age of 30, a job change every two to three years was acceptable. With such acceptance of frequent or regular job moves, the recruiters face a hard time if they are going to keep the staff they recruit. To succeed in this aim, human resources professionals need to understand what tempts staff to change. The goal has to be to create an organisation which is both productive and where people want to work and stay. The sort of questions that need answering are how to achieve a good cultural fit to keep staff motivated ­ and how different approaches can be adopted within a framework accommodating differing personality types. Furthermore, there is more employment law than ever before and compliance is harder to achieve than ever before. From the first advertisement, to interviewing and taking up references, human resources professionals need to be up to date on how new regulations affect daily practice. Delegates at the IPD conference will be able to choose from specialised seminars on call centres, internet recruitment, and how best to retain top employees. {{PEOPLE MOVES }}