The IE Center for Families in Business presents its new study on the battle for talent in the new labor market

In a work environment characterized by changing demands and an increasingly competitive labor market, the new report from the IE Center for Families in Business, in collaboration with EY, highlights the challenges and strengths of family businesses in the battle to attract and retain talent. It underscores the potential of family businesses to adapt to the new demands of workers.

The report was presented on April 4 at the EY facilities in Madrid. David Ruiz-Roso, Partner Responsible for EY Family Business, opened the event, followed by the presentation of conclusions by researchers Cristina Cruz, Director of the IE Center for Families in Business, and Rocío Bonet, Associate Professor of Human Resources and Organizational Behavior at IE University, and Jaime Sol, partner at EY Tax's People Advisory Services.

Later, a roundtable moderated by José Luis Blanco, CEO of the Family Business Institute, took place, with participants including Emilio Marcos, Corporate Director of Human Resources at Grupo AZVI; José Yera, Human Resources Director at Hijos de Rivera; Mónica Osborne, Human Resources Director at Persán; and Iker Barricat, President of Grupo Adecco.

The study, which analyzes the labor dynamics of family businesses in Spain, reveals that while they face similar challenges to non-family businesses, family businesses offer jobs with greater challenges, a clear corporate purpose, and provide better care for their employees.

Conversations with human capital experts and data collected from a survey of 500 workers in Spanish companies yielded significant results. According to the report, the main reasons for leaving a job in a Spanish family business are dissatisfaction with salary, lack of opportunities for advancement, and inflexibility. However, reasons for staying in the job include job stability offered by the company and a good work environment, elements that family businesses typically provide prominently.

“Job stability offered by the family business is a fundamental retention factor,” states the report, with 26% of workers in family businesses citing this aspect as the main reason for staying in the company, compared to 21% in non-family businesses.

Despite perceptions of less flexibility and a less favorable work-life balance in family businesses, the study reveals that lack of flexibility influences the worker's intention to leave less than in non-family businesses. In fact, transitioning from not having the option to work remotely to having it reduces the worker's intention to leave by 15% in a non-family business but has no effect in a family business.

Another finding of the report is that workers in family businesses are less likely to leave their jobs for non-economic reasons, suggesting greater alignment of values between employees and the company.

The conclusions drawn from the report suggest that Spanish family businesses stand out for their superior ability to generate engaged employees through corporate purpose and offer a decalogue of family business to enhance their strengths in the talent battle while addressing labor market challenges. 

Learn more about the report here.