"The rapid urbanization of growth economies is certainly a hot topic, yet what's not being properly addressed is the needs of people and the human and social factors that drive their decision making when it comes to what city they live and work in. That revelation is important when you recognize it is those very people upon whom the future of cities and the future of work depend," said David Anderson, President, International at Mercer. "Overwhelmingly, our study reveals what people desire most is a better life for themselves and their families. And with the segmentation study we conducted in parallel, Mercer can help businesses tailor their recruitment, retention and facilities expansion programs in order to be more effective," Mr. Anderson added.
Overall, satisfaction with life ranks as the most important factor for workers in deciding whether to stay in or leave a city. When considering a move to a new city, workers rate life satisfaction twice as important than employers realize. Safety and security rank second. Income comes in third, with proximity to family and friends in fourth and career and job opportunities fifth.
A key distinction revealed by the study is only after people have made the decision to move to a new city do money and job factors become more important. When looking to make a professional move within a city, the three top drivers are money, better career opportunities, and promotion or advancement. At the hyper-local level, proximity-based amenities and infrastructure, along with various cultural factors, matter more to employees.
Most cities are underperforming
In one of the most significant findings of the study for local governments, most workers say their cities are underperforming. The biggest tension between worker expectations and city performance is in safety and infrastructure. Pollution, personal stress, affordable housing, transport and mobility, and safety and security represent major gaps between what a city is able to deliver and what the employees surveyed value, presenting a major opportunity for making vast improvements in meeting workers' needs and expectations in the future.
The study did reveal some good news, however, with many respondents saying the cities they live and work in do quite well in terms of cultural and economic factors, and with other areas including life satisfaction, career opportunities, proximity to airports and green spaces already meeting expectations.
Clear call for collaborative action
Although the study's 15 current and future megacities share some commonalities, some key differences were revealed. Based on performance against the four pillars of human, health, money and work, the cities were grouped into advanced, progressing or approaching in terms of whether they meet worker's expectations. Advanced cities score well in all four factors, with a small-to-medium gap between workers' expectations and the city's performance.
Cities classified as progressing have a mid-size gap between expectations and performance. Lagos is ranked among approaching cities which receive low scores across all four dimensions, with the biggest gap in expectations versus city's performance, and the lowest general life satisfaction among the three groups.
"We believe one of the most important imperatives emerging from the study is the need for effective public-private partnerships to facilitate the necessary improvements," said Mr. Anderson. "To accelerate progress at scale and create the environments in which workers and their families can thrive, and in order to underpin sustainable economic growth for everyone, companies and governments must work together to address the future needs of the employees they are trying to attract."
Employees are looking to big institutions with the requisite resources and authority to effect real change. Ultimately, no one group can or should be responsible for addressing systemic issues.
The study reveals people do not expect any one group to be responsible for addressing the systemic issues of their city. According to the study, workers expect their city or local government (79%), national or federal government (74%) and large businesses (57%) all to play a role in making cities more attractive and in meeting their needs for overall life satisfaction, safety and security, and income.
The 15 cities included in the study have a population between three and 15 million people, strong projected GDP and population growth for the next decade, and more than $4 billion of foreign direct investment annually. The respondents were surveyed via a mix of online and face-to-face interviews from July to August 2018.
About Mercer
Mercer delivers advice and technology-driven solutions that help organizations meet the health, wealth and career needs of a changing workforce. Mercer's more than 23,000 employees are based in 44 countries and the firm operates in over 130 countries. Mercer is a wholly owned subsidiary of Marsh & McLennan Companies (NYSE: MMC), the leading global professional services firm in the areas of risk, strategy and people. With nearly 65,000 colleagues and annual revenue over $14 billion, through its market-leading companies including Marsh, Guy Carpenter and Oliver Wyman, Marsh & McLennan helps clients navigate an increasingly dynamic and complex environment. For more information, visit www.mercer-africa.com. Follow Mercer on Twitter @Mercer.
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