Current specialist skills shortages have arisen from a background of disproportionate economic growth; the demand for great candidates is still rising fast, but the availability of the skills themselves is dwindling. Much emphasis is put on the importance of Government-backed apprenticeship schemes as an investment into future talent to prevent these shortages, but is this simply too slow a process? And how should businesses battle current skills shortages internally within their own organisations, especially in more senior roles?
The extent of the current skills shortages in the labour market can be clearly observed in the Government’s Shortage Occupation List which contains sectors as diverse as natural science, electrical engineers, social workers and artists – a true indication of just how widespread this skills crisis has become. The implications are that businesses could fold and even the UK’s economic growth may be impeded.
So, what can businesses do to cope? Perhaps the most obvious short-term fix would be the use of contractors to fill specialist skills gaps that arise within individual companies. We can see this idea trending in many sectors, particularly within technology, where huge advances over the last ten years have left large skills gaps in their wake. A UK-wide rise in the demand for digital contractors is evidence of this as companies seek to “digitalise” themselves with the use of cloud computing, data storage and digital development strategy.
Another, longer-term solution to specialist skills shortages within your organisation is almost undoubtedly an emphasis on talent retention. Where the demand for specialist skills is sky high (and still climbing), businesses must have the competitive edge over their rivals to keep talent in their offices and not lose out to their competitor across the street. One way of promoting this talent retention is by offering a tailored benefits package to staff. It is massively important that care is taken to personalise each of these: one employee may relish the chance to travel, for example, but another may prefer an extensive training programme to ensure career advancement plus bonuses such as gym membership or even childcare vouchers. One key aspect of the benefits package that is becoming more and more prominent within leading companies is a flexible attitude to working. A work environment of value, support and encouragement is an excellent way of getting head and shoulders above your competition when attracting and retaining highly skilled workers.
In the current employment climate, specialist recruitment consultancies are more intrinsic to business success than ever before. Not only can they access pools of applicants with the desired skills, but their understanding of the long term needs of both general sectors and individual clients means that they are also able to match great candidates with positions of interest. With heightened demand for talent, many applicants have turned to specialist recruiters as a means of accessing and comparing more extensive lists of vacancies, creating a valuable platform for businesses to stand out and attract great talent, especially during a specialist skills shortage such as this.
What do you think is the best solution for specialist skills shortages?
