• Employee retention is a major priority for CHROs, with millions of workers seeking new jobs
• Advanced internal mobility platforms help match employees with new roles and opportunities 
• Machine learning tools crunch data about job performance, openings, and skills to help managers identify the right fit 

The reasons behind the Great Resignation are complex, but what seems clear is the toll the movement is taking on employers. In 2022, more than 4 million workers a month left their jobs, according to the latest U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report. Now, companies are turning to AI to retain their workforces.

One factor behind the surge is a lack of perceived opportunity to move upward or elsewhere within an organization. According to the Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM), one-third of departing employees cited lack of career advancement opportunities as a primary reason.

of departing employees cite lack of advancement as a primary reason for leaving

In response, companies are increasingly focusing on strengthening internal mobility—an employee’s ability to find new opportunities for growth and advancement inside the organization. Global companies like IBM, Unilever, Cisco, General Electric, PwC, and Mastercard have each created internal talent platforms to link their employees with upskilling and job openings.

More than just job boards and skills assessments, these platforms employ machine learning and other advanced technologies to analyze employee performance, job and upskilling opportunities, and skills overlaps, and then build models to help managers and employees find the right fit.

In 2019, Unilever debuted an internal talent marketplace called InnerMobility. Since then, 65,000 employees in more than 90 countries have joined the program. And 9,000 of them moved into new roles due to platform-driven upskilling efforts in the previous year, the company said.

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Despite the success of such programs, only a third of HR leaders say they have implemented an internal hiring platform, according to a study by The Conference Board. But advances in internal mobility platforms may convince more employers to get on board.

“Organizations can make more strategic investments in employee development by using internal mobility platforms to understand what skills are currently valued and where there might be a skill gap for future needs,” says Gretchen Alarcon, vice president and general manager of HR service delivery at ServiceNow.

The business imperative of internal mobility

According to a study of 32,000 LinkedIn users, employees who are promoted within three years of being hired have a 70% chance of staying five additional years. Workers who make a lateral move inside their organization have a 62% chance.

Janet Mertens, research director for the Josh Bersin Company, a leading HR consultancy, says internal mobility is now “a business imperative.” For early adopters of internal mobility platforms, it’s an investment that can improve talent retention rates, boost engagement and productivity, and break down organizational silos.

At the core of many of those internal mobility platforms is AI.

At IBM, where more than 50,000 employees have enrolled on the company’s Blue Matching platform since 2015, cross-silo recruitment uses predictive analytics to send notifications for potential job matches across divisions. IBM estimated that its AI-equipped program saved the company more than $100 million in 2018 by avoiding expenses associated with recruiting, training, and employee turnover, according to a SHRM report.