Retaining talent is not just a question of salaries; we analyse the case of Anoia

In recent years, the Anoia region has been experiencing a phenomenon that is worrying both businesses and institutions: many people who live there choose to work outside the region, especially in Barcelona and Baix Llobregat.

Traditionally, we have justified this by convincing ourselves that local companies can hardly compete in terms of salaries with those in the metropolitan centre. But reducing everything to a question of money is wrong.

Retaining talent is much more complex, and the key lies in how companies manage people, what work experience we offer and how we project the future within our organisations.

When the region becomes a commuter belt

I meet many people, of all ages, experiences, professional and educational levels, who tell the same story:

‘I would like to work in Igualada... if one day a project comes up that is similar to what I am currently being offered elsewhere.’

This does not mean that they are only looking for a higher salary. What they are looking for is a complete work project, with stability, growth, flexibility and recognition. When this project does not exist or is not attractive enough, the decision is clear: they work elsewhere and keep Anoia solely as their place of residence.

The reality is that there are innovative companies in the region, but there are also those that still operate with rigid management models that are ill-suited to current labour market expectations.

What are talented individuals looking for today? The four key factors

These are the conditions that most influence the decision to stay or leave today:

• Real flexibility. Adapted working hours, partial teleworking and the possibility of work-life balance. The next generation will not give up these conditions, and if they do not find them here, they will look for them elsewhere.
• Professional development and career path. Talent wants a future: training, career progression, the ability to grow. When internal promotion is limited, the exit door remains open.
• Comprehensive remuneration model. Salaries in kind, benefit plans, funded training, flexibility, additional days off, incentives... In many cases, these can compensate for salary differentials that the region will find difficult to match.
• Culture of leadership and recognition. Teams that feel they work in an environment of trust and respect tend to stay. When the culture is rigid, uninvolving or uncommunicative, talent leaves.

Companies have a key role to play and a huge opportunity

Many companies in Anoia are already doing well: they incorporate flexibility, are committed to continuous training, take care of their teams and offer more comprehensive remuneration packages. But this trend needs to spread.

Retaining talent is not an expense, but the only survival strategy in a competitive labour market. This is especially true in industrial and technological sectors, where demand for specialised profiles is high and recruitment is complex.

And what can we do as a region?

• Promote modern people management models where trust replaces rigidity and flexibility replaces control.
• Promote public policies that favour work-life balance: transport, affordable housing, services for families, etc.
• Support companies so that they can implement realistic social benefits: training, assistance with flexibility plans, or productivity incentives.
• Promote the region's attractiveness as a place to work as a shared narrative: commit to explaining that working in Anoia means quality of life, human proximity, and opportunities for growth.

Anoia can be a place to live and work if we make the necessary changes.

If we want to stop being a region that exports talent every morning only to get it back at night, we must understand that retaining people is about projects, culture and work experience.

The challenge is great, but so is the opportunity: if we are able to build more humane, flexible and attractive employment models, the region can cease to be a commuter belt and become a land of opportunity.