Thousands of employers in 42 nations face shortage of talented workers

The 9th annual talent shortage survey was released by ManpowerGroup Thailand.

Engineers are second on the list for three consecutive years. The most common reason was that candidates did not have the technical competencies required. 

Some 47 per cent of companies address talent shortages by using new human resource management practices. 

ManpowerGroup’s marketing manager Suthida Kanjanakantikul said: “The 36 per cent of employers globally reported talent shortages in 2014, which is the highest percentage in seven years. In addition, 54 per cent of employers said talent shortages had a medium to high impact on their ability to meet client needs.”

The top 10 jobs employers have difficulty in filling are: 1) skilled trade workers, 2) engineers, 3) technicians, 4) sales representatives, 5) accounting & finance staff, 6) management/executives, 7) sales managers, 8) IT staff, 9) office support staff, and 10) drivers.

Labourers dropped out of the top 10 due to declining demand over the last three years, she said.

“The most common reason employers struggled to fill jobs is that candidates do not have the technical competencies required. Other reasons include a shortage of available applicants, a lack of experience or employability skills and misaligned candidate expectations,” she said.

“As a result, different strategies are being used to address talent shortages including adopting new people practices (47 per cent), recruiting from untapped or under-tapped talent pools (25 per cent) and preparing to adopt alternative work models (23 per cent),” she added.

According to 2013-14 statistics, the number one impact of talent shortages on organisations was reduced ability to serve clients (41 per cent), followed by reduced competitiveness/productivity (40 per cent), increased employee turnover (27 per cent), reduced innovation and creativity (24 per cent), lower employee engagement/morale (24 per cent), and higher compensation costs (22 per cent).

“The answer rests with HR — the one group with the expertise and influence to reshape their companies’ talent-base by acting decisively to ensure a sustainable workforce. The HR profession is rapidly changing and expanding. As the world of work evolves, new areas of expertise are required to drive business results within organisations,” Suthida said.

Three key roles HR must play are: 1) HR as supply and demand experts, 2) HR as marketers, and 3) HR as designers.

“Due to the tentative economic recovery, 36 per cent of employers continue to struggle to fill open positions. At the same time, unemployment continues to be a global problem. Clearly there is an oversupply of labour and an under-supply of the right talent. HR can help their companies accelerate business performance by assessing their organisations’ talent sources, people practices and work models”, Suthida concluded.