Talents, investment in welfare at the heart of programmes to retain them

The chronic difficulties of matching supply and demand on the labour market, crossed with the demographic issue that has severely reduced the pool of young candidates, even more so than those with the required skills, means that by now almost nine out of ten (88%) HR directors have keeping the best talent in the company at the top of their priorities. Among the main levers they use one is wellbeing, not least because 75% of organisations report a ROI (return on investment) of more than 50%. Almost one in 4 organisations even report returns in excess of 100%. A global survey conducted by Wellhub, an all-in-one platform for holistic employee wellbeing, entitled 'Return on Wellbeing', which polled 1,500 human resources directors in 10 countries including Italia, shows that when top performers leave, there is a direct impact on company performance. This is why in 88% of companies retaining top performers is a top priority, while 62% also express concern about the possible loss of employees with artificial intelligence skills.

Matteo Musa, Head of Italy at Wellhub explains that as 'companies become leaner, the pressure falls on fewer people. Organisations that recognise this change and support top performers are the ones that will maintain performance over time. It is important to recognise that if companies continue to raise the bar, they must also support the people they are expected to exceed it'. The main change taking place is that generated by AI, which is not only reshaping roles, but also increasing the risk of burn out. The Wellhub report indicates that 88% of companies use AI in at least one business function, but only 7% have fully implemented it on a global scale. ChatBots are also widespread among employees: 52 per cent use them, but are not inclined to state transparently that they have used them for important projects. This data shows the spread of shadow AI and a non-linear relationship with the use of AI. There are some particularly significant data. Access to generative AI tools led to a 34 per cent growth in productivity for less skilled or novice employees, while those with more experience saw modest increases, according to Wellhub's survey. While AI increases speed of response, it also increases burnout: a perception emerges that technology is paradoxically increasing cognitive load, with employees interrupted on average every two minutes by notifications and digital communications, leading to a fragmentation of work that fuels burnout. 68% of employees say they have difficulty managing the pace and volume of work, while 46% report feeling burnout.

Corporate wellness in this context becomes strategic for retaining top performers. This is another reason why 85% of international HR leaders are convinced that wellness programmes are strategic for retaining top performers, 82% believe that wellness programmes are important for sustaining performance and 83% are convinced that wellness programmes improve the engagement of top talent. Restricting to Italian data, 88% of HR managers consider wellness a productivity booster. Thus, for the vast majority of hr managers in Italy (82%) retaining top performers is a top priority for 2026, with a large 79% saying that wellness programmes are important for retaining top performers. The report also reveals that 88% of Italian HR directors are convinced that wellbeing programmes improve productivity. Not only that, 85 per cent of companies also talk about reducing the cost of health benefits, while 58 per cent emphasise that deteriorating employee mental health places a direct economic burden on the organisation. 67% of HR leaders say that wellness programmes are important to support the performance of key talent and 79% rate wellness programmes as important for top performers, compared to 71% who say the same for all other employees.