Attracting and retaining the best staff has been cited as the top focus area in the next 12 months in a survey of larger businesses.
The study was carried out by Censuswide on behalf of engineering, technology and consulting service provider Expleo.
In a bid to enhance recruitment, the average medium-to-large-sized enterprise in Ireland will spend €1.7m on company culture in the next 12 months, according to the survey of 150 business and technology leaders.
The Expleo Business Transformation Index shows that a fifth of organisations believe that poor company culture or reputation is hindering their ability to hire skilled people.
Other top obstacles affecting hiring were found to be undesirable office location, applicants not having the appropriate skills, unrealistic demands regarding remote or hybrid working, cumbersome and complicated visa processes, and a lack of housing.
The average medium-to-large-sized enterprise is planning to spend €2m on staff training and upskilling.
"Despite the diversity of our business landscape, we are made up of communities and if people don't enjoy working in your organisation, word will very quickly get out and that can impact your ability to hire the most skilled people," said managing director at Expleo Ireland Phil Codd.
"Recruitment has become incredibly competitive, and everyone is looking to make marginal gains to improve their value proposition to prospective employees," Mr Codd said.
