How can we navigate the skills disruption?

Skills shortages have been high on the agenda for CEOs for many years. They cause disruption to organisations and can stifle their growth plans. Businesses of all sizes, across all industries and locations, are struggling to source the skills they need.

But as global productivity levels plateau and economic uncertainty continues, we can't afford to simply paper over the cracks; we need to tackle the supply-demand gap and strengthen our workforce strategies for the future.

A data-driven approach

The latest report from Hays takes a deep dive into a huge, global 2024 dataset of job listings and candidate profiles across five resilient industries. We've focused on technology, engineering, banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI), manufacturing and life sciences – we have highlighted these sectors due to their powerful global presence and strong hiring intent. We identify the locations with the most widespread talent shortages and explore emerging networks.

But our findings will be relevant to many organisations, regardless of size or sector. As organisations increasingly look to operate across borders, they must also engage talent in a similar way.

Effective workforce planning is critical to business success. Organisations must assess gaps within their business by analysing their current workforce and forecasting future needs. This will make sure you have the right people, with the right skills, in the right places.

Of course, navigating a global network of talent isn’t simple. Few organisations have the time or resource to conduct a worldwide search for skills. There are cultural, legal, educational and financial implications, as well as increased risk and hidden costs.

But the talent you need refuses to sit still. You need a location strategy that identifies the countries with a strong network of skills, plus an action plan to enable you to attract and engage this talent.

In this edition of Workforce Connect, I offer an overview of the findings from our latest report, The Workforce of the Future: Navigating the Skills Disruption.

Winning the talent battle in the Tech sector

Any discussion on talent shortages must include the technology sector. Our report outlines our ‘Top 10’ roles for the industry, taking into account current demand against future need. My colleague, Scott Cameron, highlights how roles are evolving:

"What we’re yet to see [in the top 10] is Artificial Intelligence-specific roles. Instead, AI is forming elements of exciting specifications. However, as AI responsibilities become more comprehensive, we’re anticipating these roles to emerge".

AI is currently a part of job roles rather than a standalone speciality. As the technology continues to evolve AI-specific roles will begin to grow. But where will the talent come from and where should you be focusing your search for talent? Balancing cost and experience, we have found that the most resilient locations that emerge include India, Romania and Hungary.

Colombia also offers potential, displaying a healthy percentage of early-in-career talent (0-3 years' experience) who show an impressive entrepreneurial mindset. With the right investment, it’s set to be a future powerhouse of tech talent.

Organisations eager to make the most of these networks need to ensure they have a value proposition that works. The recent hire-and-fire cycles at tech giants have damaged the attractiveness of the industry. You need to give people clear and compelling reasons to choose your organisation.

Identifying the skills needed in the Banking and Financial Services sector

The BFSI industry has undergone a digital revolution in recent years, changing the way financial services are managed and delivered – and this is impacting the skills that organisations need.

Recognising the connection between technology and finance, David Spence, Global Head of Growth for Enterprise Solutions at Hays, also focuses on the impact of AI in reshaping job roles:

"At least some responsibilities within jobs like Asset Transfer Specialists, Remediation Specialists and Payments and Processing Control will be taken over by systems. But that’s not to say people will be out of a job. This industry is so heavily regulated that the intellect of trained, experienced professionals is still going to be critical".

Despite greater connectivity, the BFSI sector is still traditional in the sense of wanting to ‘see’ the work being done. The industry is also more risk-averse, so we often see organisations prioritising nearshoring opportunities to manage their skill shortages.

It’s for these reasons that Romania, Hungary and Poland emerge as popular choices for European businesses. Mexico emerges a resilient location for similar reasons in the US, although legislation has made it more challenging to employ contractors.

Organisations eager to build a global talent strategy will need to carefully consider which tasks and roles are better suited to nearshoring. Focus on the outcomes of the work and only then determine the type of worker (e.g. permanent, contract, freelance) required to deliver this.

Finding purpose-driven people for the Life Sciences industry

The rapid growth in patient-centric medicines and personalised care is defining the life sciences industry.

Katharina Heise, who leads our Pharma sector in Hays Germany, said: "With personalised care the ultimate goal, Patient Care Providers will continue to be in high demand".

Heise also talks about the influence of technology on the sector, adding that big data and AI will be important to growth, while tightening regulation will mean that cyber security roles will be ‘paramount’.

In summary, "the lines between the tech and life sciences industries will continue to blur".

As a rapidly evolving industry, life sciences has a slightly different story to tell than the other sectors in our report. France emerges as a key hotspot for more junior talent (27% of the available talent report 0-3 years’ experience), perhaps unsurprising given the number of government-incentivised early career programmes.

Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia offer robust talent profiles when we split the data by experience and cost, with Malaysia boasting a strong pipeline of future skills.

As the sector continues to grow and competition for talent intensifies, organisations will need to consider their role in creating talent, rather than just consuming it. Building partnerships with educational institutions is an investment that will pay dividends in years to come.

Tackling your talent challenges, together

Most organisations are wrestling with an increasingly complex set of decisions when it comes to skills shortages, and the reality is – there is no quick fix to what has become a business-critical problem.

You need to shape a global, total talent strategy to tackle the supply-demand gap that is prevalent in so many locations across the globe.

I’ve only been able to scratch the surface in this blog, but you can discover emerging talent networks, access expert insights and get our take on the ‘top jobs’ in the latest report.

Download your free copy and together, we’ll develop your global talent strategy.