CEOs’ #1 Concern: Hiring, Training And Retaining Employees

A recently-completed survey of 1,443 chief executive officers (CEOs) from around the U.S. shows that 34 percent of respondents consider hiring, training and retaining employees to be their biggest challenge.

Conducted by TEC (The Executive Committee), a San Diego-based 40-year-old international organization of more than 5,000 members, the survey indicates that management/leadership was the second area of concern. Growth ranked third.

Respondents were also asked to list their three biggest opportunity areas. Twenty percent said they consider new markets to be their top priority followed by future growth and technology.

TEC CEO Bill Williams sees the survey results as interwoven. "The key to successfully seizing an opportunity is providing the right leadership with the right kind of people to make it all come together. CEOs can’t take full advantage of the opportunities until they get the right people on board," Williams said. "They see potential in new markets and emerging technologies. But they also see the increase in employment nationally this past year that has made it harder to find and keep quality people."

All respondents are members of TEC, which has two CEO programs. Members run businesses with $750,000 to $1 billion in annual sales.

Founded in 1957 by Milwaukee businessman Bob Nourse, TEC is a forum for CEOs and company presidents to share their experience and knowledge, and to help each other run their businesses more effectively. Membership in TEC is by invitation only.

Each TEC group includes no more than 14 CEOs from noncompeting industries who meet monthly in a confidential forum to share ideas, explore opportunities and find solutions to corporate problems. Many meetings also include well-known business and industry experts who address key management issues relevant to the specific needs of the group.

TEC is located in approximately 70 cities across the U.S., and also serves members in Canada, Great Britain, Australia, Brazil, Singapore, Malaysia and South Africa, with additional groups being formed in Hong Kong and the Philippines. CEO members of TEC run companies that total more than $175 billion in annual sales and have more than 1 million employees.