A recent poll by IT research firm Gartner asked technology pros to rate which perk was most important to them, and most likely to keep them in their current jobs: job security, company-funded training and certification courses, flexible work hours, or recognition from upper management.

The results: 35% said job security was number one. Training and flexibility came in a close second and third, respectively, with 32% and 31% of the votes.

Very few (2%) feel recognition is most important.

These days, job security can’t be easily guaranteed, and there’s little room in most companies’ budgets for extra training. But flexibility is a cheap benefit that can be offered in many cases. And going the extra mile to provide training could be worth it in some cases to retain top-performing employees.

Almost one out of five employees (19%) says changing jobs is a priority for the new year, according to a recent CareerBuilder poll.

But what about the economy? It’s not much of a factor — 60% of employees polled say the current climate has had no impact on their career plans.

What can be done to hang on to those employees? Here are the main reasons people say they’re looking for new opportunities:

• Pay – A quarter of employees are dissatisfied with their salary. Also, 35% say they didn’t get a raise in 2008, and 25% got an increase of 2% or less.
• Advancement – A quarter of workers are also unhappy with their chances to move up the corporate ladder. One in five say they were overlooked for a promotion they should’ve gotten last year.
• Work/life balance – More than half (54%) of employees say their workloads have increased over the last six months.

Give them a realistic picture of what the job will be like before they’re hired.

Sometimes, hiring managers will oversell the job in order to hook a desirable candidate. That may work in the short term, but those employees might not be with the company very long.

Here’s what managers should be clear about with applicants:

• The job — It all starts with an accurate, well-written job description. Get help from current people in the position or people who have been promoted out of it.
• Time expectations — No employee wants to be surprised that a new job requires them to work overtime, holidays or weekends. They need to know roughly how much time the job takes, how flexible scheduling is, etc.
• Culture — Would you describe the workplace as a high pressure environment? Laid back? Ask candidates what environments they thrive in and let them know what it’s like to work for your company.
• Room for promotion — An easy way to make a new hire quit early is to promise him a quick promotion and then not deliver. Let applicants know how soon typical employees in that job advance. If expectations are too high, employees will soon feel stuck.

Companies see a lot of benefits from telecommuting, such as attracting better and more productive workers, according to a recent survey by the Computing Technology Industry association.

The top benefits employers reported:

• More productivity when commutes are eliminated (67%)
• Cost savings because less energy and office space is used (59%)
• Access to a wider pool of qualified staff (39%)
• Higher retention rates (37%)
• Better employee health through reduced stress (25%)

A lot of workers are close to walking out the door.

One in four employees say they don’t feel loyal to their current employer — and 20% said they’ll likely change jobs within the next year, according to a recent CareerBuilder survey.

Losing that many workers can have costly implications. What can HR do about it? Here are the most common reasons employees gave for their lack of loyalty:

• My employer doesn’t value me (61%)
• My work isn’t recognized or appreciated (52%)
• I’m not paid enough (51%)
• There’s no room for advancement (44%)
• I don’t like the company culture (33%)
• The benefits aren’t good enough (32%)
• I don’t like my boss (23%)
• I don’t get enough training or education (21%), and
• The work isn’t challenging (19%).

A majority of workers (79%) don’t want to switch employers any time soon, according to a recent survey by CareerBuilder and USA Today. (41% said they’re staying where they are until they retire, while 38% said they plan to keep their current jobs for at least the next year.)

Those numbers coincide with a drop in the number of companies that plan to hire — only 23% said they’re adding full-time employees within the next three months. That’s down from 25% when the same survey was conducted in July.

The employees’ plans could be good news from a retention perspective. But for companies that are hiring, the uncertainty may make it tough to convince prospective hires that the move to a new job is the right choice.

Roughly 70% of recent college graduates quit their first job within two years, according to a survey by Experience, Inc.

Why? Beyond the profitability of job hopping, one reason may be that many of them didn’t want those jobs in the first place — 43% said they’re not in the career they expected or wanted to be in, either because they didn’t get a job they wanted, or they jumped on the first opportunity that presented itself.

Furthermore, 60% are currently looking for a new job or career.

All is not lost, though — despite the lack of loyalty, 57% reported they were happy in their current positions.

What can companies do to increase Generation Y’s loyalty? Here’s some advice from Experience:

• Set expectations — Giving an accurate picture of the job while you’re recruiting will help filter out people who will be unhappy.
• Offer lifestyle benefits — Flexibility is key for keeping young workers satisfied.
• Get social — Younger employees tend to stick around more often when they have good relationships with their peers. Holding events that bring them together whenever possible is one way to boost retention.

You’ve spent countless hours recruiting the best talent out there, and now your managers have some top-notch people working under them. The next step: Keep supervisors from making mistakes that drive the talent away.

There are a lot of reasons top performers quit their jobs, but a big part of the problem boils down to one common saying: Employees don’t leave companies — they leave bad bosses.

Here are the seven most common supervisor mistakes that push workers out the door, according to hiring consultant Mel Kleiman:

1. Not returning phone calls or responding to e-mails — Managers are busy, and it’s easy to forget about replying to questions from employees. But it’s also one of a boss’s most important tasks, since not responding sends workers a clear message — they aren’t important or valued.
2. Micromanaging — Nearly 80% of employees say they’d be more motivated at work if their managers gave them more freedom to decide the best methods of getting the job done, according to a recent Zogby poll. More motivation results in higher job satisfaction and longer tenure.
3. Giving assignments, then locking the office door — The reverse of micromanaging is also a big retention killer. Some employees want and need more direction than others — supervisors should be able to adjust their approaches for different types of workers.
4. Keeping them in the dark — Another role of the supervisor is acting as the first line of communication between workers and top management. Therefore, it’s often up to managers to tell employees about new company initiatives, personnel changes and other key company news. Being kept in the dark about what’s going is one thing that convinces employees the company doesn’t value them.
5. Avoiding recognition — A common complaint many employees have: “I do great work, and no one notices.” Organized recognition events can be a great morale boost, but often all it takes is a simple compliment or thank-you from the boss.
6. Changing expectations on the fly — Another way to burn out employees is to let them start a project, then alter the assignment. Things change, of course. But too often, busy managers don’t give employees as much advance notice of the changes as they could have. That will cause some serious retention problems, not to mention a huge drop in productivity.
7. Withholding respect — Finally, you’ve simply got to show employees some respect if you expect them to stick with the company. Sounds like a no-brainer, but many managers could use a reminder every now and then.

On average, 25% of new hires quit within the first year, according to a new study by the Novations Group.

How can you avoid that and get your money’s worth with new hires? Here are the top three reasons employees jump ship so soon:

• 48% of newbies who quit said it was because the company had unrealistic expectations about them
• 33% said it was because their supervisors didn’t give them enough support, and
• 23% said they didn’t have the skills they needed to do the job.

Answer: Impress them quickly.

That’s the word from a recent survey by the Novations Group. Employees under 30 (notorious for job-hopping) were asked how long it takes to decide whether or not a new job is right for them. The results:

• 26% said “less than a month”
• 51% said “one to six months,” and
• 22% said more than six months.

In other words, if young hires don’t feel highly satisfied within the first few months, most of them will be heading somewhere else.

Hang on to talent

Here’s some advice the Novations Group has for retaining young employees:

• Don’t underestimate the power of relationships. Employees (especially twenty-somethings) are more likely to stay in a job where they have friends. Set new employees up with peer mentors so they have a go-to person starting on day one.
• Offer training and help attaining professional certifications. That’s a low-cost benefit that has a lot of value for both employee and employer.
• Explain how the job fits in with the “big picture.” Early on, introduce new workers to other departments and explain overall how everything’s connected. Folks tend to be more committed if they see the effect their work has on the organization.