A fundamental disconnect exists between current attempts by IT and telecoms firms to hire talented staff and the priorities of the candidates themselves, according to a new Deloitte survey.

The Competing For Talent study found that the vast majority of companies in these sectors rely on financial incentives to attract and retain employees.

However, today's workforce values greater freedom in schedules and control of where and how they work over financial compensation.

"The conflicting perspectives between technology and telecoms employers and employees suggest that the respondents are significantly challenged in how they capture their fair share of talent in the near term," said Deloitte Consulting's Jeffrey Alderton.

"Despite our experience in seeing organisations wanting to shift focus on long-term retention strategies, the urgency of 'getting talent in the door' versus showcasing career scenarios to new recruits is causing some disconnection whereby companies still view financial incentives as a quick fix."

The survey also found that creative and other critical talent that generates value for customers and shareholders is most difficult to attract, and the problem is expected to increase over the next three to five years.

"A company's ability to recruit and manage talent has become the bellwether for the overall health and longevity of the organisation," said Phil Asmundson, vice chairman at Deloitte's Technology, Media & Telecommunications group.

"Technology and telecoms companies need to identify which job segments have the greatest impact on their financial success, and actively focus talent management activities in those critical areas."

Deloitte surveyed more than 150 technology and telecoms companies in North America to understand the most significant talent issues and what companies are doing to address them.