Employee retention promises to be one of the key challenges this year for the UK arms of global technology companies Bosch and LG Electronics, according to the companies’ human resources directors.

As a supplier to the struggling UK automotive industry, Bosch UK has not escaped fallout from the losses felt by auto manufacturers, acknowledged HR director Andrew Castle. “Where we have to downscale, we will try to redeploy, but that will depend on the flexibility of the individual, their skillset and where they want to go,” Castle told Recruiter.

In fact, Bosch UK has no plans to recruit this year, Castle said: “We’re not recruiting because of the economic situation but we will recruit when economic conditions improve, and we want talented people who want a career to join the group.”

Paul Moran, newly appointed HR director at LG Electronics for the UK and Ireland, told Recruiter,“We can’t ignore the current economic climate, but it’s important to look ahead at the green shoots of recovery. An organisation’s competitive advantage is its people, and the retention and development of employees should be high on every business agenda.”

However, Moran said LG will be reviewing all of the recruitment agencies on its preferred suppliers list over the next six months “with the aim to move from around 20 key preferred suppliers to six”.

He went on to say that one of his objectives was “to focus recruitment spend on a select number of agencies who know our business and whom will be tasked to find talent to ensure a more targeted approach. We’re looking for the best in the industry.”