A study of 32 million profiles of active LinkedIn users who’ve worked at a larger company (one with more than 500 employees) since 2013 illustrates the important role that internal mobility plays in retention. The study found the likelihood of an employee staying with a company decreases as the years pass. One year after being hired, there’s a 76% chance the worker will still be with the company; however, this drops significantly by year five with estimated retention of 38 %. However, employees who were promoted within three years of being hired to have a 70% chance of staying on board, and those who made a lateral move have a 62% chance of staying. Those who were not promoted and who did not change jobs internally have only a 45% chance of remaining. Aside from internal mobility, the study showed the manager effectiveness, as well as employee empowerment, also had an impact on retention. Overall, the study underscores that internal mobility, manager quality, and empowerment are important drivers of retention.
