It almost doesn’t need to be explained, does it? The headline says it all. But a recent survey conducted by CIPD, in conjunction with Hays, has found that 72% of HR professionals think competition for skills will increase over the next three years as a direct result of leaving the EU.
Around 66% believe that more senior and skilled employees is going to get a lot harder, and three quarters (!) claim they are having difficulties sourcing the right candidates, right now! As a consequence of this increased competition for talent, employers have found themselves needing to review their branding. In fact, an incredible 89% of organisations have been making improvements to their employer brand over the last 12 months in order to appear a more attractive prospect.
And, as I discussed in last week’s post on Why You Need To Be Running Pre-Assessment Tests, 41% of employers feel that the length of their recruitment process has directly lead to the loss of recruits.
Though there has been a lot of chatter in the world of recruitment regarding the threat of automation, only 39% of those surveyed found that technology had replaced some jobs in their organisation.
Although a great deal more employers are utilising apprenticeship schemes, 30% of those surveyed found that the education system is poor at equipping the younger generation with the appropriate skills. Those being leadership skills, digital skills and commercial awareness – for which there is a strong demand right now. Especially in digital and machine learning.
Despite these worries, the companies aren’t doing themselves many favours. Whilst they are demonstrating concerns over the difficulties or hiring the right talent, they aren’t paying attention to their own recruitment activities. Only 16% of HR professionals said their organisation measures the ROI on their recruitment activity – and 56% of companies surveyed don’t even calculate the cost of people leaving their business.
So whilst there are clearly concerns about the increasing skills gap, and impending talent shortage, many businesses aren’t, themselves, approaching the whole process of recruitment in the right way.
Speaking on the matter, Associate Research Adviser at CIPD, Claire McCartney offers some sage advice: “Moving forward, organisations need to continue to develop a thorough understanding of their existing talent profile and their current and future requirements. Targeting resources effectively will remain a priority through this period of wider economic and political instability. Ongoing monitoring and evaluation will be key to ensure that the methods used to attract, select and retain employees are effective and fit for purpose.”
I couldn’t have put it better myself.
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