KPMG report details the biggest hurdles for 2023

KPMG has released Keeping us up at night: The big issues facing business leaders in 2023. The report details things that employers should be wary of this year, as well as the expectations employees have in today’s workforce.

2023 risks to businesses, as listed by KPMG:

• Talent acquisition, retention and re/upskilling staff to meet a more digitised future (77 per cent)
• Digital transformation and optimisation, and extracting organisational value from it (46 per cent)
• Dealing with cyber risks (40 per cent)
• Dealing with evolving regulatory processes, reporting changes and impacts (35 per cent)
• The need for greater agility and flexibility in their organisation to meet opportunities and challenges (35 per cent)

KPMG Australia’s national managing partner, people and inclusion, Dorothy Hisgrove, noted that attraction and retention are top issues because “people now rarely choose to work somewhere just for the salary, rather flexibility, quality of the team, learning opportunities, type of work, societal contribution, values alignment, and experiences are all factors”.

Financial tech company Paytime’s chief executive officer, Steve Furman, offered some solutions to these issues. In a statement on the KPMG report, Mr Furman said organisations should look to offer benefits such as flexible working hours, wellness packages, pay that's on demand, and corporate discounts.

“Australia is currently experiencing its tightest labour market in nearly 50 years, so employees currently have the upper hand in demanding extra benefits,” said Mr Furman.

“Companies who don’t think ahead and outside the box when it comes to employee perks are going to get left behind in the battle for the best talent.”

3–5-year risks to businesses, as listed by KPMG:

• Talent acquisition, retention, and re/upskilling to meet a more digitised future (61 per cent)
• Dealing with cyber risks (43 per cent)
• Digital transformation and optimisation, and extracting organisational value from it (43 per cent)
• Identifying and growing future market segments and/or innovation opportunities for growth (40 per cent)
• Dealing with evolving regulatory processes, reporting changes and impacts (35 per cent)

According to the business leaders surveyed, the risks for 2023 are much the same as the 3–5-year risks. With attraction and retention topping most employers’ concerns, companies might look to implement some of the policies outlined by Mr Furman to stay ahead of their competition.

Dorothy Hisgrove has previously spoken about What KPMG Australia’s FY22 impact report means for their engagement, inclusion, and learning for HR Leader in September of 2022.