In today’s fragile global economy, an organisation’s ability to attract the right talent is critical to achieve higher performance. So, the scramble for hiring the right talent is likely to intensify further. In mature markets, the situation will worsen with declining birth rates and ageing workforce, even as the demand for sophisticated skills – essential for innovation and growth – rises.
In developing economies, despite millions of young people graduating every year, finding the right talent remains a key challenge. About a third of employers worldwide find it difficult to fill key positions due to lack of talent. For many companies, these skill gaps result in delayed products, reduced customer satisfaction and lower revenue. Against this backdrop, the human resource professionals need to don the hat of strategic thinkers and approach talent acquisition strategies differently. They need to have right capabilities to make sure the skills are identified, sourced and deployed on demand.
However, the demand for new skills cannot be met through traditional methods. HR must master new capabilities for the complex business environment and broaden the scope of their role by:
• Acting as advisors: Just as finance professionals use data modelling and analysis to find the optimum inventory or capital levels, HR can use these tools to obtain right talent with right skills. Depending upon the changing needs of business, HR must keep adjusting the workforce equation to determine the best solution.
• Fostering talent mobility: It is vital to have a clear plan for global talent mobility, alongside the development of strong local talent. With a borderless workforce becoming the norm, HR needs to locate, source and manage talent globally.
• Managing an extended workforce: HR needs to manage a pool of diverse global talent. This requires building a talent network, where full time employees are supported by contractors and temporary staff working on a transactional basis.
• Facilitating new skills: Reskilling workers and making them more productive can help combat the skills shortage. By making learning an integral part of their jobs, HR can help employees develop additional skills, while still carrying out their day-to-day responsibilities.
• Making requirements transparent: HR needs to help candidates and educational institutions better understand the skills required for different roles. It also needs to create new ways to bridge the gap between educators and employers in the understanding of skills.
• Using analytics to drive sourcing strategies: In addition to the traditional ways of sourcing talent, HR needs to use analytics to understand the needs of the candidates.
