Irish semi-state and public bodies are the most attractive employers for professionals working in Ireland, according to new research from Universum, which is part of IrishJobs.
The Most Attractive Employers Index Ireland 2023 reveals shifts in the most desired employers for professionals across Ireland, with well-established semi-states and public sector organisations becoming more popular, and multinationals in the technology sector declining in popularity.
The study was conducted among over 8,800 professionals in Ireland working in business, IT, engineering, natural sciences, humanities, law and medicine.
Semi-state and public bodies make up six out of the top 10 most attractive employers among business professionals.
They have made significant gains on last year, including Enterprise Ireland moving from 18th to 8th place and the Central Bank of Ireland increasing six positions from 15th to 9th.
The Civil Service holds 2nd place among business professionals as well as featuring in the top 10 employers across all professional disciplines.
The Health Service Executive (HSE) is another employer that ranks highly across multiple disciplines, moving from 6th to 3rd among business professionals.
Some technology multinationals have experienced significant falls in this year’s index, with several large companies falling outside the top 20 employers among business professionals for the first time in several years.
This includes Facebook which fell from 4th place to 28th, LinkedIn from 9th to 13th and Microsoft from 10th to 21st.
While Google maintained first place among business professionals, it lost a notable percentage of its choice as an ideal employer.
Technology multinationals experienced some of the biggest shifts in popularity among IT professionals, with Facebook falling from 5th to 17th and LinkedIn dropping 13 places to 24th.
New entrant TikTok performed well, taking 7th position among IT professionals.
The study shows that competitive base salary, work-life balance and secure employment are the top three attributes that professionals look for in an employer.
Secure employment rises from fourth position last year, indicating the value professionals are putting on stability in light of economic uncertainty and sectoral-specific layoffs.
Flexible working conditions are in 4th place, down one position from last year, reflecting the fundamental role that hybrid working continues to play in the changing world of work.
“Given the impact of the continued rising cost of living, it is unsurprising that a competitive salary remains the most highly desired employer attribute in our research,” said Sam Dooley, Country Director of The Stepstone Group Ireland, parent company of IrishJobs.
“However, given the tight labour market, financial compensation is only the first step in attracting and retaining employees.”
“The rise in importance of competitive benefits year-on-year shows that professionals are seeking wider and more meaningful value from employers in a talent friendly labour market,” Mr Dooley said.