Increasing workforce productivity is the top HR priority for UK employers this year, according to research by Manpower.

The research, conducted by GfK NOP of more than 2,000 employers, reveals that 23% of employers consider improving staff productivity to be their top HR priority for 2008, compared to only 7% in 2007. Improving workforce productivity has risen up the HR agenda from joint fourth place in 2007 replacing staff retention as the number one concern.

Mark Cahill, managing director of Manpower UK, says: "New year, new challenges, means new priorities for employers.  Improving labour force productivity and maximising efficiency is currently top of the company health-check agenda.

"We believe one of the key ways to improve workforce productivity is to respect, value, and reward your staff. We spend time advising many of our clients on not only how to attract and recruit staff, but also how to remunerate, reward and retain their existing workforces."

The survey shows that the top four HR Priorities from 2007 continue to dominate the concerns of employers this year: staff retention drops from the number one HR priority to second place (21%), adapting to new legislation (14%) moves from the number two priority in 2007, to third place this year, the introduction of new technology (10%) drops from third to fourth place and productivity leaps from fourth position to become the chief concern for 2008. Succession planning (6%) and wage inflation (5%) are also considered to be key HR priorities in 2008, although to a lesser extent.

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