The 2016-2017 Talent Shortage Survey by ManpowerGroup surveyed more than 42,000 employers globally, and reports that 40% of them have difficulties hiring the right people due to a global shortage of talent. The survey indicates that nearly half (46%) of employers in the US are finding it difficult to fill jobs.
Why is it increasingly hard for employers to fill positions?
- Unavailability of applicants or no applicants
- Lack of hard skills or technical competencies
- Lack of experience
- Employees seeking more pay than what is offered
What strategies are employers globally pursuing to overcome talent shortage?
With the shortage of top talent these are some of the strategies used by employers today:
- Outsourcing
- Train and develop existing staff
- Recruit outside the talent pool
- Alternative sourcing strategies
- Additional perks or benefits to recruits
- Pay higher salary packages to recruits
- Change their current work models
How are employers addressing the talent shortage in the US?
While some companies are opting to train and develop their existing staff, about 44% opt to outsource and 27% use alternative sourcing strategies.
With the continued increase in talent shortage many employers globally and in the US, are looking for alternative ways to solve their talent crisis. While all industries are feeling the resource pinch, there has been a dramatic upswing in education, transportation, manufacturing and construction. According to Kip Wright Senior Vice President of Manpower North America; Low unemployment coupled with shorter skill cycles due to rapid technological advances is a major cause of talent shortage in the US. Hiring managers now more than ever need to employ the right strategies to attract and retain talent on demand to remain competitive. In addition, some of the work requirements are for short term projects so the appeal and demand for outsourced, temporary resources has increased over the past several years.
The most difficult positions to fill are skilled trades like Accounting and finance, followed by technology resources, sales representatives and engineers. The talent shortage is caused by skills requirements and an increase in the need for more specialized skill sets. Outsourcing has become the logical choice to solve this talent shortage. Many companies now understand that the cost of training their employees and the lack of production during the time of training, is much more expensive than using an outsourced resource model.