The Harvard Business Review states that, ‘As any good leader knows, their most important job is attracting, retaining, and advancing the right people.’
At Tribus, our unique data-driven approach helps leaders achieve this confidently, cost-effectively and consistently. By doing so, we give them back the freedom to focus on what they do best.
Why does your businesses need Insightful People Solutions?
There are several factors which make it increasingly difficult to attract and retain talent. Skills shortages is just one example which is often a concern for our clients. In its pre-pandemic 23rd Annual Global CEO Survey (2020), PwC found that, ‘The supply of people possessing STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) skills and the uniquely human skills (e.g., creativity, empathy, collaboration) increasingly prized in today’s job market cannot keep up with demand.’
Other factors only add to the challenge. The rise of home working means that employers have to compete with businesses across the UK or even globally for talent. Companies have to demonstrate a clear and sustainable vision and purpose to attract the best candidates. Both new and existing employees have increasing expectations around what they perceive to be basic benefits, such as health insurance, gym memberships and flexible working.
These problems are not restricted to the UK. A survey by The Conference Board in 2016 indicated that ‘Failure to attract and retain top talent’ was the number one issue recorded by global CEOs.
The importance of upskilling employees
‘The availability of key skills has been a top ten ‘extreme concern’ for the last decade, impeding innovation and prompting higher people costs.Businesses cannot hire their way over this skills gap at a price they can pay, so the imperative is clear. Employers and employees must join hands and invest in upskilling or risk irrelevance.’ PwC, 23rd Annual Global CEO Survey
Are smaller businesses immune from these problems?
The short answer is no. In 2019, the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) commented that, ‘FSB evidence consistently shows that skills shortages are one of the top barriers preventing the growth of small businesses. Our Small Business Index (SBI) for Q4 2019 shows that more than a third of small businesses report that finding skilled staff was a barrier to expansion.’ This was the highest percentage recorded since the question was added in 2013.
Although the end of the furlough scheme is now likely to bring a spike in redundancies, which may rejuvenate the job market, it’s worth noting that employers will have taken steps to identify and retain their best people. This means that you won’t necessarily attract applications from the pick of the crop.
Of course, deciding which employees to keep can be a tough decision and one which may have significant repercussions. In the SBI report for Q3 2020 (December 2020), the FSB noted that, ‘Many firms expressed concerns over having appropriately skilled staff, with just over a fifth (21.1%) expecting this to be a barrier to their growth over the coming year.’
Implementing effective solutions
In 2021, businesses of all sizes will need to take a four-pronged approach to ensuring that they have the right people in the right place at the right time. They must:
- Attract – position themselves as an employer of choice
- Recruit – ensure they have the leaders to be successful
- Retain – take effective steps to retain their most skilled and promising employees
- Develop – help their people to realise their potential
In later blogs, we’ll examine the role each of these can play in building successful, profitable and resilient businesses. In the meantime, please contact us for more information.
