THE AVIO AERO

PEOPLE’S MAGAZINE

Avio Aero has won the Randstad Globe, the prize awarded to the companies that come top in the individual factors covered by the annual Randstad employer branding survey. Our company received the highest number of Italian votes for career advancement, pleasant work atmosphere and work-life balance.

“This result obviously gives us great pleasure," our President and CEO, Riccardo Procacci, commented.  “It reflects the major steps forward Avio Aero has made, in Employer Branding and elsewhere, since it joined the General Electric group in 2013. We have often focused on self-criticism and concentrated on what we could be doing better. And of course, that's important for growth, but it's also great to be able to look around us from time to time, and see that people outside our organization appreciate the professionalism and commitment we bring to what we do on a daily basis. So we'll continue to do our utmost to attract the best talents, with the skill set - digital, technical and soft skills - that will maintain the excellence of the aeronautics industry in Italy and abroad." 

Commissioned by Randstad from the TNS research institute and conducted independently (no company can sign up to take part) on more than 160,000 people in 26 countries, with in-depth assessment of almost 5,500 businesses, the Randstad Employer Brand study measured Italian companies' attractiveness as perceived by potential employees.

In Italy the survey, performed in November and December 2016, interviewed more than 5,000 people from 18 to 65 years of age, a representative sample of people in work, students and the unemployed, who were asked "where would you most like to work?" out of 150 Italian-based companies with more than 1000 employees, operating in 17 different industries, selected on the basis of Cribis data.

The results of the survey identified Thales Alenia Space as the most attractive Italian employer to potential employees, with 66.3% of preferences (amongst those who recognised the brand), giving it first place on the Randstad Employer Brand 2017 rankings. The aerospace company, European leader in the production of orbital infrastructure and satellite systems, was workers' favorite with regard to two of the ten factors surveyed in particular: stimulating and challenging work and use of the most innovative technologies. Lamborghini Automotive came second, with 63.6% of Italians' votes, exercising appeal above all with regard to "good reputation”. The Mondadori Group was placed third in the table, chosen by 63,3% of potential employees, the only media, news and culture industry company in the top three.

What workers are looking for - According to the Randstad Employer Brand survey, the factor Italians consider most important in a job is work-life balance, followed by a pleasant work atmosphere, job security, salaries and benefits, and stimulating-challenging work.

However, priorities vary depending on gender, age and educational achievements. Women 45-65 years of age with relatively little schooling put job security top of the list, while those between 18 and 24 place more emphasis on a pleasant work atmosphere. Salaries are particularly important for men between 25 and 45 years old, but - for both genders - the priority given to the stimuli and challenges the job offers increases hand-in-hand with educational qualifications. Italian firms do not seem to meet their potential employees' expectations with regard to these factors. On average, firms score highest on financial soundness, good reputation and the use of the most innovative technologies, rather than in the factors at the top of workers' wish-lists.

The ideal employer - The sectors in which Italians would like to work are first and foremost the media (57%), retailing (53%) and industry (51%). The ideal employer is a large corporation or multinational, with an SME in second place and a no-profit organization in third; becoming self-employed is only considered as a last resort.

When looking for a new post, Italians consider that the job's contents are more important (84%) than the company's image and brand (16%). The main channel used for checking a company's reputation is the official one - its website - followed by the opinion of friends and relatives, and articles published on the web.  Job Boards and LinkedIn are ranked below these sources.

Almost nine Italians out of ten would be prepared to change their sector of employment, although attitudes vary. 31% of workers are open to any opportunity because they do not feel a bond with their current sector, and another 31% would only change if the salary and benefits were similar to those enjoyed at present, but 26% would only change if they were no longer able to find employment in their current sector. However, 8% would not change sector because they think their skills are not transferable to other contexts, and 10% are strongly committed to the field in which they now work. 

The impact of automation and Industria 4.0 - Generally Italians do not seem to be afraid that their jobs are about to be phased out and replaced by robots with the arrival of Industry 4.0, although some people are starting to worry. Most workers (46%) believe that automation will improve their jobs, and 37% think it will not have any effect on their duties. However, 11% fear they may lose their jobs through the advent of the new technologies.

The fourth industrial revolution demands new skills, to adapt to a constantly changing labor market. But Italians in general seem to be prepared to update their skills: 58% of workers say they would be happy to retrain in exchange for a salary equal to above their current one; 32% are sure of their skills and cannot imagine a program or a robot putting them out of work; but 7% would rather change companies than acquire new competences.