57% of employers in Hong Kong are currently struggling to find staff with the right skill sets—6% higher than the APAC average—according to the latest Annual Talent Shortage Survey results just released by ManpowerGroup Hong Kong.
Who moved my talent?
A pronounced worldwide talent shortage is now having a dramatic impact on Hong Kong employers, with the majority of them experiencing difficulty finding the right talent. In 2012 just 35% reported such difficulties, but since then the figure has risen dramatically to almost 60%—the highest level of hiring woes recorded since the global economic crisis struck. Over 400 Hong Kong employers were surveyed and 86% said that talent shortages will have a medium- to high-impact on their ability to serve clients and maintain their competitiveness.
Who’s hardest to hire?
Employers in Hong Kong are having the most difficulty filling jobs in sales, technical and engineering roles. Sales representatives have continued to top the ‘hardest to hire’ list in Hong Kong since 2007 and in APAC since 2006.
Hong Kong’s hardest to fill jobs
1. Sales representatives (1)
2. Technicians (4)
3. Engineers (2)
4. IT roles (6)
5. Management / executive roles (5)
(Figures in brackets indicate 2012 rankings, where applicable)
Lancy Chui, Regional Managing Director, ManpowerGroup, Greater China Region commented, “Sales representatives continue to be the most challenging positions to fill. In addition, our survey results have constantly shown that employers report a growing concern over the availability of engineers, with the job category having maintained a presence in the top five in-demand jobs over the past eight consecutive years due to the booming of infrastructure and railway construction projects.”
Surveyed employers in Hong Kong also report that there are challenges filling open positions, with over a quarter saying that candidates lack technical competencies, and almost 20% reporting that candidates lack self awareness. Fifteen percent of employers also expressed concern that candidates’ salary expectations were higher than could actually be offered by the organisation.
Hiring solutions
Hong Kong survey participants did, however, acknowledge they are taking steps to overcome difficulties in filling critical positions by adopting new approaches to people practices, modifying work models and sourcing talent differently.
Top approaches to innovative recruitment
1. Recruiting more from untapped talent pools such as older workers (24%)
2. Actively recruiting women (13%)
3. Redefining qualifying criteria to include individuals who may lack certain key skills, but demonstrate the potential to acquire them (11%)
4. Using nontraditional recruiting practices (10%)
Global problem
The global survey results reveal this talent shortage is endemic across the world and most acute in Japan
Who’s having problems?
Japan 85% of employers
Brazil 68% of employers
India 61% of employers
Turkey 58% of employers
Hong Kong 57% of employers
Employers in Ireland, 3%; Spain, 3%; South Africa, 6%; the Netherlands, 9%; and the Czech Republic, 9% are the least likely to face talent shortages.
The research shows that globally the most difficult roles to fill are skilled trade workers, engineers and sales representatives—unchanged from last year. This year employers also report that accounting and finance, and management/executive positions are becoming increasingly hard to fill. Despite acknowledging the impact talent shortages have on their business, 22% of employers are not changing course to identify new ways to address these shortages.
In ManpowerGroup’s insight paper The Great Talent Shortage Awakening: Actions to Take for a Sustainable Workforce, they suggest several strategies HR leaders should pursue to fuel their organisation’s competitiveness. These include; identifying and attracting untapped talent, creating a culture of talent development, implementing a ‘Teachable Fit’ framework to ‘manufacture’ talent aligned with business needs, and improving collaboration with education institutions to ensure graduates are work ready.
