The ongoing ‘war for talent’ has been a hot topic since the 1990s and its only becoming more complex thanks to digital transformation. 2023 marked a 17-year high in the shortage of skilled workers, with 77% of employers worldwide struggling to fill positions.
In South Africa, organisations face a similar challenge, with companies struggling to secure and maintain top-tier talent, particularly in technology-related positions. To address this situation, here are three talent acquisition and performance management strategies that will support your business’s growth, despite skills shortages.
#1: Identify and leverage hidden talent
In response to talent shortages, it’s crucial for employers to tap into non-traditional and underutilised talent reservoirs to maintain a competitive edge. Companies are innovating their recruitment approaches, capitalising on the untapped skills within their existing workforce and sourcing external skills to augment their current capabilities.
For example, repurpose an employee’s latent abilities into roles where they can deliver more value to the organisation by creating clear career pathways within the company through cross-training opportunities. Companies can also implement mentorship programs that encourage employees to develop new skills and take on different roles within the organisation.
Adopting a skills-based approach in recruiting also focuses on the specific competencies required for success in a role, rather than overemphasizing formal qualifications. To transition to skills-based recruiting, companies can revise job descriptions to highlight competencies over degrees, use skill assessments as part of the interview process, and consider candidates with non-traditional backgrounds who have demonstrable skills that match the company’s needs.
Finally, many businesses are accelerating transformation by outsourcing contracts to strategic resourcing partners. Outsourcing anything from short-term projects to strategic technology modernisation allows companies to access resources that can become an extension of their team. Contracting services help companies achieve agility in an increasingly digital world.
#2. Streamline operations for effectiveness
Modern HR teams are critical in shaping the employee journey and anchoring organisations with a purpose-driven mission. Within this space, strategic workforce development and integrating essential technologies becomes more pivotal. Talent Acquisition (TA) teams, as a key component of HR, must adapt their operational models to meet these ongoing HR transformations. With talent recruitment becoming more competitive and the necessary skills to excel in this environment changing, TA functions often find themselves lacking the necessary capabilities, capacity, or efficiency to deliver a service that mirrors the external reputation of their organisation.
Maximising operational efficiency in TA involves streamlining processes to reduce time-to-hire without compromising quality. Through process outsourcing, it is possible to implement automation tools for routine tasks, establish clear procedures, and continuously analyse performance data to identify and eliminate bottlenecks.
A business-centric TA model aligns talent acquisition strategies with the overarching goals and needs of the business. To achieve this, regularly collaborate with business leaders to understand their strategic objectives and tailor your recruitment efforts to support these goals, ensuring that new hires or outsourced talent contribute to the company’s success.
#3 Prioritise skills and performance management
Companies that emphasise a skills-first strategy are significantly more effective at not only positioning talent optimally but also in retaining high performers. Skills are becoming increasingly important in the job market, prompting many companies to pivot from traditional role-based structures to ones that acknowledge an individual’s potential for continuous learning and skill enhancement in the workplace.
Ultimately, adopting a skills-based approach in Talent Acquisition and Performance Management allows for more dynamic role definitions and agile team structures. Similarly, a focus on skills optimises the alignment of employees’ strengths with organisational needs, leading to greater productivity. By implementing a skills inventory, it is possible to match the individual competencies of current employees with internal opportunities, and identify key gaps that need to be filled, either through permanent hires, contracted talent or training and development.
Cultivating a skill-diverse workforce prepares an organisation to adapt to changes and bounce back from challenges effectively. We have also found that focusing on skills fosters a culture of innovation by encouraging employees to apply their unique abilities to overcome complex challenges.
Encourage a collaborative environment where employees with different skill sets are brought together to brainstorm and tackle projects, which can lead to breakthrough ideas and innovative solutions.
How Paracon can help
As a well-established specialist in IT resourcing, we bring extensive expertise and experience to deliver top-tier tech talent to innovative companies in various industries. Our profound understanding of project and business staffing needs, regardless of scale or complexity, is supported by our deep domain expertise.
Chat to our team today about your talent-related needs.