The talent shortage continues to bite. A massive 87% of companies are either suffering from a skills gap already or anticipate one in the coming years. Thanks to a gaping chasm between the need for specific skills and the supply of talent to match, businesses often find themselves sitting twiddling their thumbs, waiting for the right person to come along.
While talent scarcity across many industries is an undeniable fact, it’s crucial that companies do not meekly accept the status quo. Instead of passively waiting for candidates, it’s time for businesses to change their approach and adopt a proactive, global approach to recruiting talent.
But to successfully adopt that mindset, it’s vital to first understand the scale of the problem.
Welcome to the talent shortage, 2023-style
The causes of the global talent shortage are many and various. And it’s worth emphasizing that it is a truly global phenomenon, with searches for the term trending upward everywhere in the past few years.
One of the most significant drivers is a wholesale change in the skills businesses require and the job roles they offer. According to the World Economic Forum, by 2025:
- 85 million jobs will have disappeared compared to 2020
- 97 million new jobs will have been created to replace them
- As a result, 50% of the workforce will need to reskill
The COVID-19 pandemic had a role in further accelerating this transformation, with the accompanying lockdowns requiring businesses to find new, more remote ways of doing business.
Pair that with broader societal changes, such as an aging population and the tendency of younger generations to hop more frequently between roles, and it’s little wonder that skills shortages are proving so hard to fix.
What sort of impact are skills shortages and talent scarcity having?
The global talent shortage is significantly impacting productivity, with one report projecting a loss of about $8.5 trillion in unrealized annual revenues by 2030, stemming from an anticipated global human talent shortage of more than 85 million people.
At the same time, the mismatch is leading to a recalibration of the balance of power between employers and employees. While some sectors struggle to hire anyone at all, in industries such as tech, the remuneration required for top talent is spiraling as multiple companies compete to attract the same candidates.
But candidates are looking for more than just a higher wage packet. One survey of 15,000 workers found that maintaining a good work-life balance is just as important to employees, whether due to companies measuring productivity by results rather than hours worked or facilitating hybrid and remote working options.
Which roles are most affected by the global talent shortage?
Most sought-after skills
According to a 2023 global survey, the most sought-after hard skills predictably are technical. The technical skills most desired by businesses are those in:
- IT and Data
- Engineering
- Sales and marketing
- Operations and logistics
- Customer-facing and front office
Industries feeling the talent scarcity crunch
While the talent shortage bites across the board, some industries suffer more than most. Communication services and energy utilities are the most affected, with 79% of companies reporting that they cannot find the skilled talent they need. Following that, we have:
- Health care and life sciences (78%)
- Information technology (78%)
- Consumer goods and services (77%)
- Industrials and materials (77%)
- Transport, logistics, and automotive (76%)
- Financials and real estate (73%)
Countries hardest-hit by skills shortages
The relatively slight differences between the affected areas suggest this is a genuinely cross-industry phenomenon, with businesses in all sectors feeling the pinch. And not only does talent scarcity span across sectors, but also countries. On average, 77% of companies globally report difficulty filling open roles—with the greatest impact felt in Taiwan, where a remarkable 90% of businesses report difficulty filling roles. That’s closely followed by Germany and Hong Kong at 86% and 85%, respectively. Rounding out the top 10 are:
- Portugal (84%)
- Puerto Rico (83%)
- Singapore (83%)
- Hungary (82%)
- Austria (81%)
- China (81%)
- Finland (81%)
Getting Creative with Talent Recruitment
In this environment where talent is scarce, companies must explore all available options and get creative with recruiting talent.
Can quiet hiring solve things?
One potentially profitable avenue of exploration is the phenomenon of quiet hiring, a term referring to employers reassigning roles and responsibilities to other employees to fulfill acute and immediate business needs.
That way, if an employee suddenly quits, another employee from within the organization, who is intimately familiar with the role, can be transferred internally to fill the position. Of course, that leaves an opening where they once were, but ideally, that new opening will be for a position that is easier to fulfill.
How about hiring foreign workers?
Another option is looking internationally to cast the hiring net as wide as possible and hiring foreign workers. That’s easier said than done, however, with many potential hurdles to overcome along the way, from finding talent in the first place to understanding regional tax, benefits, and HR policies.
If businesses truly want to overcome the hiring challenges they face, they need partners who know what they are doing. This is where the Multiplier Talent Marketplace comes in.
Overcoming talent shortages with the Talent Marketplace
Many businesses choose to rely on professionals to take care of this for them, but even finding individuals with the necessary expertise can be a hassle.
Introducing Multiplier’s Talent Marketplace. A carefully curated suite of business services and software partners, the marketplace is designed to help companies overcome the many challenges of global growth—from the intricacies of international banking to the nuances of talent acquisition, equity management, and remote team productivity.
Find the best global talent the easy way
We’re big believers in the potential of global teams, which is why we’ve brought together partners capable of sourcing, screening, and recruiting the best talent from across the world.
From international talent-sourcing firms to recruiting agencies and job boards, the entirely free Talent Marketplace is the go-to place for those seeking help in attracting, hiring, and retaining global teams. Check it out here.
Supercharge global growth
But that’s not all we’ve done. Our Partner marketplace counterpart boasts a suite of apps, integrations, and solutions for the most challenging problems facing global businesses. Whether it’s accelerated onboarding, increased productivity, or automated processing, our stable of vetted industry leaders can help businesses in areas such as:
- Payments
- Visa Services
- Mobility
- Recruitment Services
Still struggling to understand your way through the global talent shortage? A glut of global talent is out there waiting, and Multiplier can put them and you together. Talk to our experts to find out more.
