The SIA’s Executive Forum: 3 key learns from Day 1 

Global Head of Solutions, Rob Moffat, reflects on a busy first day at the Executive Forum (North America), presented by Staffing Industry Analysts.  

The first day of the Executive Forum covered some familiar topics, but with a more progressive look at the “so what” and “what next.”

Here’s my take on the trending themes and conversations predicted to dominate our discussions over the next 12 months.

What Talent Shortage?

The day started and ended with a focus on what has now been upgraded by one speaker from a ‘Talent Shortage’ to a ‘Talent Crisis.’

Familiar statistics were shared regarding people leaving their roles - 3.9 million in December 2021 in the US alone – but there was also more insight into the stories behind these figures. For example, last year there were 2.4 million ‘excess’ retirements – people who may never return to the workforce.

However, it was also suggested that in fact there is not a talent shortage at all – it is simply in the wrong place. This was supported by statistics showing that while 55% of the demand for IT skills is in the Americas, over half of the available skills are based in APAC.

So, what are the answers?

Discussions centred on the global workforce, but also on the requirement for upskilling and reskilling and the staffing industry’s potential roles in this. After all, ‘if not us, then who?” But, as with many challenges facing the staffing industry, it may not be that simple, with one IT leader admitting upskilling projects were ‘not as successful as he would have liked.’

Flexible work

Another familiar topic was the move to flexible working, supported by some unsurprising statistics, including that 62 percent of workers value the ability work remotely as ‘very important.’

However, there were some new additions to the story line, with 31 percent willing to consider a pay cut in order to work remotely.

The challenge and opportunity for both employers and the staffing industry is to acknowledge that skilled professionals have now adopted ‘the mindset of a consumer’ when choosing when where and how they want to work. Organisations will require a fully developed and communicated value proposition of not only the ‘what’ of a role, but also the ‘why’ when engaging talent.

With differing demographics embracing the return to the office with varying degrees of enthusiasm, there was also a word of caution. We must reward Performance over Presenteeism. If we allow flexible working, we must also recognise the value each employer provides - whether physically visible or not.

Technology does not eliminate jobs

No staffing forum would be complete without discussion of the effect of technology, both on the industry itself and the organisations it serves.

The ‘technology doesn’t eliminate jobs’ quote was heard more than once, and while I don’t believe this is strictly accurate, the truth is, it both eliminates and creates, possibly in equal measure but in different areas.

Following the Talent Crisis theme - this results in new jobs being created, but a lack of appropriately skilled talent to fulfil that demand.

Within the staffing industry itself, the majority agreed that technology, specifically AI, wouldn’t fully replace the recruiter. However, we need technology to absorb the burden of repetitive or time-consuming tasks to allow people to focus on the higher value interactions – those that require creativity, problem-solving and communication, that cannot currently be automated.

Technology is also affecting how we interact with our customers, with numerous new platforms available. Although, one speaker colourfully warned that ‘If you have too many of them (platforms) it leads to Frankenstein’s monster of epic proportions.’

The adoption of platforms has been quicker for the candidates, or service providers, who have already moved to, what one commentator called, the “future future,”, with their prospective employers lagging in adoption in the here and now.

It was also acknowledged that there may not be a built-in preference for serviced or self-service, but that what people really desire is the benefit of the output, however that is best delivered.

The same, but different.

All in all, some familiar topics, but a universal recognition that the world of work has changed, probably forever. I’m looking forward to the next few days of the Forum, as we consider how we rise to these challenges and take advantage of the opportunities that lie ahead.

Uncover more insights in the second part of this series, as I reflect on Day 2 of the Forum.