PDI Ninth House Pulse on Leaders Study Reveals Employee Priorities Throughout Turbulent Economy: Work Life Balance Takes the Biggest Dip

MINNEAPOLIS, Feb. 1, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The recent economic crisis brought key shifts in employee motivators, with work life balance taking the largest hit according to a PDI Ninth House Pulse on Leaders survey released today. Stimulating and challenging work continues to be the No. 1 motivator among workplace employees.

In 2006, PDI Ninth House Pulse on Leaders survey results reported that leaders ranked work life balance No. 4 among 19 possible motivators; by 2009 that motivator fell to No. 7 and remained there through 2011. Instead, the importance of friendly co-workers has crept up steadily, with a peak in 2010.

Monetary compensation ranked eighth for the last six years behind several motivators, including influence in organizational direction and personal accomplishment.

PDI Ninth House asked more than 26,000 leaders across many organizations between 2006 and 2011 to choose the five most important workplace motivators from a list of 19. During this time, the global economic recession began and economic hardship continued as indicated by the U.S. unemployment rate, the GDP and the suffering housing market.

"Economic turbulence can be a key factor in causing leaders to reevaluate what's important to them," said RJ Heckman, President and CEO, PDI Ninth House. "Understanding these motivators and what's truly important to leaders is critical to attracting, engaging and retaining top talent in the workplace."

PDI Ninth House recommends taking inventory to understand what motivates top talent in order to produce a productive workplace with effective leaders who can focus on what is most important to them.

MEDIA NOTE

Look for future data releases from PDI Ninth House Pulse on Leaders.

PDI Ninth House Pulse on Leaders analyzes different workplace questions on a regular basis and can be used as a source for gaining insight on the inner values of talent management and leadership development.

About PDI Ninth House:

PDI Ninth House is the world's premier global leadership solutions company. For more than four decades, we have provided integrated assessment, development and coaching solutions around critical leadership and business challenges that most directly impact each leader's success and the success of their organization. For more information, contact PDI Ninth House at 1.612.339.0927 (in the U.S. 1.800.633.4410) or visit its website at www.pdinh.com.

SOURCE PDI Ninth House