A panel of hi-tech executives at Tuesday’s Maariv Business Summit discussed the challenges of recruiting, training and retaining hi-tech workers.
The discussion was moderated by Walla correspondent Liat Ron, and featured Amit Yampolsky, director of enterprise solutions at Papaya Global; Tali Cohen, human resources manager of the business division at Natural Intelligence; Yael Aviram Rosenfeld, recruitment manager at Nvidia Israel; and Keren Pakes, VP of brand marketing and communications at Bright Data.
After introducing the panel, Ron noted that 2021 was a successful year for Israeli hi-tech and that many companies struggle to attract and retain talented staff members.
Pakes commented that while benefits and perks may initially attract employees, ultimately, what matters most is the company’s organizational culture and the feeling that the employee has an impact on its products and strategy.
Cohen added, “The employee should be given meaning; that he does something beyond and participates in social activities that have value and impact beyond the company for which he works.”
Pakes pointed out that she is not opposed to employees leaving a company after a year, because sometimes they feel that they need to develop their talents elsewhere.
On the other hand, she said, “At Bright Data, we also have many young employees who started as juniors or students and today, after several years, are directors and executives of our company. They stayed because there was a clear path that suited them in the company, as well as the opportunity to work with the leading companies in the world.”
Most hi-tech companies offer lavish benefits to their hi-tech employees, but in exchange, the group noted, they must work extremely hard and be available at all hours of the day and night, when needed.
Yael Aviram-Rosenfeld, Director of Recruiting, NVIDIA Israel: "There is no doubt that remuneration and the ability of companies to let its employees enjoy the fruits of its success are important in high-tech, but workers also value the ability to develop innovative technology and influence the world. We need to create the right mix – to be attentive to employees and their changing needs. This can mean providing a comfortable home office that the company will provide, creating online activities and giving employees extra days off, alongside the technological challenges of their work.”
Pakes added that beyond the benefits that a company can offer, “There is no substitute to a sense of emotional connection to the company, and this is the only way to avoid a wave of layoffs or resignations. It is up to all of us in the tech space to make sure we create it.”
This article was written in cooperation with Bright Data.