The Kenexa Research Institute Answers the Question: Why Do People Join Organizations?

WAYNE, PA--(Marketwire - July 16, 2008) - Research conducted by the Kenexa (NASDAQ: KNXA) Research Institute (KRI) asked workers what their reasons were for joining their current organization. The report analyzes data drawn from a representative sample of workers surveyed through WorkTrends™, KRI's 2008 annual survey of worker opinions.

For years, there have been many speculations as to why people accept a job with a new organization. While KRI's research confirms that there are a variety of reasons people join organizations, for all workers surveyed, two top items emerged as critical decision points. After the most obvious -- compensation -- an organization's reputation was the most important reason why employees accepted their current job offer.

An organization's reputation consists of a variety of characteristics, including their involvement in corporate responsibility initiatives, product quality or profitability. The survey results revealed that senior managers and sales people placed the most value on the organization's reputation in weighing an employment offer, as did employees in India, Italy, Russia and Brazil.

"The correlation between the organization's reputation and successful recruiting efforts strongly supports the importance of employment branding," said Jack Wiley, executive director of the Kenexa Research Institute. "It's not about each individual job offer -- this research highlights the value of presenting and maintaining positive brand messaging to the potential employee talent pool." He continued, "Investing in living organizational values, whether it's profitability, longevity or social good, and then communicating the fulfillment of these goals is an impactful way to attract and align engaged employees."

About WorkTrends™

The Kenexa WorkTrends database is a comprehensive normative database of employee opinions on topics including leadership, employee engagement and customer orientation. Comparisons are available for workers from Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.

About Kenexa

Kenexa (NASDAQ: KNXA) is a global leader in building the world's greatest workforces using a combination of software, employee research science and business process optimization. Kenexa's global solutions include applicant tracking, onboarding, recruitment process outsourcing, employment branding, skills and behavioral assessments, structured interviews, performance management, multi-rater feedback surveys, employee engagement surveys and HR Analytics. Kenexa is headquartered in Wayne, Pa. (outside Philadelphia). Additional information about Kenexa and its global products and services can be accessed at www.kenexa.com.