Experis Blog

With the IT skills gap continuing to grow, unemployment remaining at the lowest levels seen since comparable records began in the 1970s and Brexit likely to exacerbate the issue, organisations are beginning to consider alternative talent pools. However, employment processes in many organisations haven’t adapted to meet this change in requirements, often creating barriers for the very talent they are hoping to attract. As well as creating disengaging and overly protracted application processes, job ‘requirements’ are often unnecessary and instantly remove certain groups from the talent pool. With a constantly shifting technology landscape, individuals choosing a career in IT will need to regularly update their skills to remain relevant in the industry. As a result, rather than continuing to hire for the skill sets an individual has at a particular point in time, businesses must begin to hire for capabilities and, most importantly, learnability – the desire and ability to develop in-demand skills to remain employable for the long-term. And this isn’t just critical for your new hires – it’s also vital to foster a culture that encourages existing workers to upskill, reskill and adapt to the changing times. One programme which is helping employers to see the potential of this alternative approach is AWS re:Start, a training and job placement scheme designed for young adults and military veterans, members of the military reserve, those leaving the Armed Forces and service spouses. Launched in January 2017, the AWS re:Start programme aims to educate 1,000 individuals in the latest digital skills including software development, cyber security and cloud computing technologies. Once they’ve completed the course, AWS work with Experis, Sage and the MoD to place and support the graduates in work. Ex-military and younger individuals with little experience in the world of work are often overlooked when it comes to employment in the IT space, not possessing existing knowledge of the IT systems in place or lacking the understanding of how their existing skills could be transferred to the workplace. However, with the right training in place, these individuals can become exceptional assets for the business, often displaying soft skills such as communication, leadership and problem solving that organisations are struggling to find. We have seen the right training have a similar impact in other sectors. In Italy’s Emalia Romagna region, the world’s most advanced motorsport manufacturers – Ferrari, Maserati, Lamborghini and Dallara – were struggling to find enough skilled workers to fabricate the stronger, lighter-weight components used in their high-performance cars. Partnering with local technical schools, universities and government, ManpowerGroup’s Experis team opened the Labs and Academy Training Centre. Leveraging a unique targeted curriculum, the Experis Lab has retrained hundreds of workers and upskilled the region’s under-employed textile workers with high-tech materials like carbon fibre to work in the prestigious, high-performing, automotive industry. Removing barriers to employment Many employers talk about hiring from more diverse talent pools, but do little to make it easier for these individuals to get through the process. For example, many companies require degree level qualifications as standard, but is this really necessary for the role? Does it show that the individual has the right capabilities for the position? Reviewing the requirements for these qualifications and removing them where they aren’t genuinely necessary will help to open up your application process and diversify your talent pool. Other existing requirements should also be reviewed. For example, Bristol Council have become the first local authority to ban the ‘Criminal record box’ on job applications for all roles which don’t require a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). The changes mean that anyone with an unspent conviction will not be asked about their past at the beginning of the recruitment process – allowing them more potential to progress through the hiring pipeline, with the opportunity to get fairer recognition by hiring managers. To compete for talent, businesses should look at attracting alternative communities and work to understand where the potential road blocks could occur throughout the process. Simplifying the process is likely to make it easier for other applicants too, improving the candidate experience all round. What could you do to open up the recruitment process in your organisation? Get in touch today to find out how we can help your organisation identify and reach alternative talent pools. Keep up-to-date with the latest insights and issues impacting organisations in the IT industry by signing up to our monthly IT newsletter. The newsletter includes updates on our latest research and industry insights, as well as invitations to our market update events. Sign up to the Experis newsletter to keep track of the latest news and information for professionals in the IT sector. Name: * Surname: * Email: * By ticking this box you agree to be contacted by Experis using the information you have provided – you can unsubscribe any time. Submitting your details indicates that you have read our Cookies & Privacy policy. Please read these to access your data rights.

Digital transformation is not a one-off project. Continuous innovation must become a core feature of the business. And it’s a process that starts from the top. Organisations which are about to embark on a journey of transformation need to make sure they have the right leaders, with the right approach, alongside the technology needed to drive success in the long-term. To achieve this, an area which will require immediate attention is an organisation’s talent strategy – as business success relies on the workforce that drives it forward. Here are three ways organisations can boost their workforce strategy to prepare for digital transformation: 1. Hire for learnability Employers can’t rely on the immediate availability of IT talent, particularly in niche skills such as cyber security and big data where there are significant skills gaps. And, with technology developing at such a rapid pace, there’s an ever widening gap between the skills available and the new skills required to meet technological and business requirements. Having said that, today, employability is less about what people already know, and more about their capacity to learn. The world of work is becoming less predictable, less structured, and a wider range of skills are needed. With this in mind, it’s crucial for organisations to hire people not just based on the skills they already have, but also based on their desire and ability to continually develop in-demand skills. In turn, this will enable them to remain innovative and responsive to emerging trends. 2. Identify transferable skills and foster a culture of development In addition to hiring talent with learnability, organisations should also look to foster a culture of learnability within their organisation, by identifying and nurturing talent with transferable skills sets. For employees to keep up-to-date with emerging digital requirements and remain employable, they need to be able to evolve their skill set and adapt to new areas, as business needs change. To support this, organisations should map out the existing skills of their workers; identify business areas where new skills will be required in the future; and look for people whose skills might be repurposed to fit these new roles. These employees then need to be given the opportunity to upskill, work in other areas of the business (including non-tech related areas), and learn new skill sets through training and on-the-job experiences. This will help both employees and the organisation to keep pace with the latest requirements. It will also boost productivity and morale. 3. Develop Digital Leaders To ensure your transformation programme moves in the right direction, it is important to develop NextGen leaders. After all, it is becoming increasingly evident that there is a gap between traditional ideas of leadership effectiveness and what it actually takes to drive sustained business performance in the digital age. Organisations shouldn’t look to simply swap their leadership team with digital-ready millennial leaders. Instead, the 80/20 rule should be applied. Whether they’re looking to hire new leaders or nurture existing ones, 80% of the competencies digital-ready leaders need to have are the strong foundation of traditional leadership skills they’ve already developed throughout their careers. The additional 20% is made up of the capabilities that are now critical for modern and future leaders – such as the need to nurture learnability, accelerate performance and foster entrepreneurialism. With the right development programme, existing leaders and high-potential future leaders can be coached in these capabilities, creating digital-ready leaders that may be more advanced in their transformation journey. To drive successful change at every stage of the digital transformation journey, organisations need to identify, nurture and develop their existing and future employees and leaders. Increased engagement, collaboration in more varied ways, and exchange of information should be championed. This will encourage broader thinking and learnability to fast-track the upskilling and reskilling of people. To find out more, download our whitepaper Robots Need Not Apply: Human Solutions in the Skills Revolution.

While a growing number of employers recognise the benefits of creating a more diverse workforce, those with disabilities continue to face considerable challenges when it comes to securing and remaining in employment. Organisations with inclusive cultures have 39% higher customer satisfaction, 22% greater productivity and 27% higher profitability than those that are not inclusive. Yet despite the benefits of taking an inclusive approach to talent, research from the Centre of Social Justice found that just one-third of HR decision makers have hired a person with a disability in the last year. ManpowerGroup is proud to represent the recruitment industry on the Disability Confident Business Leaders’ Group. Disability Confident is a government scheme that aims to get one million more disabled people into employment. It is designed to help organisations recruit and retain disabled people, by providing a framework that challenges perceptions about disabilities and helps organisations build programmes to support a greater number of disabled people into work. Richard Elliot, HR Manager at ManpowerGroup, said: “As an organisation, we make it our priority to enable all people to participate in the workplace and achieve their full potential. More than 5,000 UK employers have signed up to Disability Confident, and as part of the Business Leaders’ Group, we’re proud of the role we play in helping that number continue to grow. “As well as supporting organisations that are beginning their Disability Confident journey, we’ve also used this scheme as a springboard to reinforce our own commitment to helping those with disabilities. We’re using the Disability Confident framework and working towards achieving Level 3 status – Disability Confident Leader – by the end of the first quarter of 2018. “Each year we partner with Blind Cricket England and Wales to organise an annual visually impaired cricket match which raises awareness of the abilities of disabled people as valuable employees. What’s more, this year, we’re partnering with the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) to provide work placements to a number of visually impaired individuals. These placements are designed to increase their work experience and confidence in the workplace, while also expanding our own experience, knowledge and understanding of how ManpowerGroup can help find meaningful paid work for an increased number of disabled people.” ManpowerGroup is on a journey that has only just begun. There’s so much more that can be done, and we have a genuine desire to affect change. We believe that meaningful and sustainable employment has the power to change the world, and nurturing diversity through Disability Confident is just one of the ways we hope to achieve this. To play a leading role in changing attitudes for the better, sign up to Disability Confident at: disabilityconfident.campaign.gov.uk This article first appeared in the eighth edition of The Human Age Newspaper.

Rarely a day goes by without news of digitisation, artificial intelligence, and virtual reality impacting the workplace and employment. It’s clear that a fourth Industrial Revolution is building and no one really knows what the outcome will be. According to research by McKinsey, 45% of tasks that people are paid to do each day could be automated with current technology. Added to this, 60% of all roles could potentially see at least one-third of their activities automated. Some people may predict that it’s only a matter of time before we end up with a jobless future, with our current roles completely taken over by robots. However, whilst technological changes are happening at an unprecedented pace, it’s important to remember that it’s not the first time our world has experienced technological change. With the right mindset, there will be plenty of opportunities for workers in the digital age. Learning from the past When the first Industrial Revolution started in the 18th Century, a series of new inventions transformed the way people lived and worked. Prior to the revolution, most people worked from their homes and produced their own tools, food and clothing. However, the Industrial Revolution saw the introduction of mechanical equipment, machinery, factories, mass production, and more. Entirely new industries were created. While some jobs became obsolete, others were transformed and a considerable number of new roles emerged for the very first time. Looking back at what history has taught us, more job opportunities will be created than lost as a result of technology. The world of work will become much more rewarding for humans, too. Fast forward to today and, once again, a whole host of new opportunities have emerged to meet with the demands of new technologies. From the internet to mobile phones, cloud computing, social media, and more – vast numbers of new industries, skills and careers have been developed, which were unheard of 30 years ago – creating jobs for IT security specialists, app developers, social media managers, social influencers, Uber drivers, and many, many more. The fourth Industrial Revolution is well on its way. Looking to the future: a Skills Revolution We’re in the midst of a Skills Revolution, where human ingenuity will be the linchpin of how we leverage technology in our lives and in our roles. With the right skills mix, people will augment – rather than compete – with technology. Going forward, digitisation and the adoption of AI will lift the burden of repetitive tasks. This will enable humans to focus on more valuable, meaningful roles; roles that are more complex and emotive, which machines don’t currently have the ability to perform. In fact, this may even encourage more people to study STEM subjects and pursue their careers in those fields. Unfortunately, it’s a given that certain parks of the workforce will be negatively impacted by the technological changes that are coming into place. And there’s no question that some jobs will be eliminated by technology in the years ahead, either. However, if we continue to learn and develop our skills, we can remain adaptable and employable in the future. We’ve adapted to the evolution of the labour market before and, on the whole, it will lead to more positive outcomes for workers. Digitisation and the fourth Industrial Revolution may currently be associated with a negative impact on the workforce in the future. However, we ultimately believe more jobs will be created than destroyed. Most importantly, there will always be a need for humans in the workplace. After all, machines rely on humans to be built for all kinds of purposes, let alone maintained. This will continue creating more areas of expertise to keep up – so long as workers are ready. To find out more, download our whitepaper Robots Need Not Apply: Human Solutions in the Skills Revolution. Sign up to the Experis newsletter to keep track of the latest news and information for professionals in the IT sector. Name: * Surname: * Email: * By ticking this box you agree to be contacted by Experis using the information you have provided - you can unsubscribe any time. Submitting your details indicates that you have read our Cookies & Privacy policy. Please read these to access your data rights.

The fourth Industrial Revolution is making its presence felt across a widening range of sectors in the UK. Established industries are experiencing disruption at the hands of increasingly rapid technological innovation. And with 30% of commercial revenues expected to come from new business models by 2020, rapid digital transformation can no longer be considered a luxury for businesses that need to drive growth and remain competitive. In previous Industrial Revolutions, organisations had the luxury of time to redefine processes and take advantage of technology as it developed. Now, organisations have as little as six months to change, or risk losing ground to more agile competition. However, whilst many companies are talking about digital transformation, it appears that it’s not as straightforward as some would suggest, with many high-profile failures in recent years. Although 89% of business leaders are planning, testing and implementing digital initiatives, only 47% of CEO’s have started digital transformation. Organisations who have started these programmes of change have already begun to see a contribution to business growth, increasing profitability by up to 26% and receiving market valuations of up to 12% higher than their competition. And it’s likely that this trend will continue. So, for the 53% of businesses who haven’t yet started their transformation – what is the best way to approach digital transformation and help to generate longer-term success for the organisation? Taking the long-term view Digital transformation is not a one-off project. Continuous innovation and change must become a core feature of the business, driving the organisation ahead of the competition and attracting the best talent. Having the right leaders in place to oversee this process is essential, as change can cause friction amongst employees; impacting decisions, hampering progress and disengaging individuals. Driving the right behaviours and leading by example are key components to making the transformation a success. Leaders must keep the business running smoothly with one hand whilst preparing for a different and uncertain future with the other. This will require regular monitoring and intervention to ensure that the transformation is heading in the right direction in all areas of the business, allowing the opportunity to course correct if needed. Effective leadership Creating a culture of innovation requires the right leadership – both today and in the future. And with 9 out of 10 HR leaders believing that their organisations don’t have the leadership talent required to drive digital transformation success, businesses need to upskill existing leaders and strengthen their talent pipelines to close the gap between traditional ideas of leadership effectiveness and what it takes to drive sustained performance improvements in the digital age. But far from requiring a complete replacement of traditional leadership capabilities, businesses must simply apply the 80/20 rule. Eighty percent of the competencies and enablers that have contributed to an effective leader remain the same. Strong leadership skills should not to be underestimated. The additional twenty percent of capabilities which have become critical for modern and future leaders can be strengthened through coaching and include: Accelerating performance by attracting and developing high potential talent Helping employees to understand the significance of their role in achieving the company’s goals Equipping mid-level leaders to foster innovation, take risks and manage difficult decisions As well as attracting the right talent to your organisation, these skills will help today’s leaders nurture and retain their existing talent. The ultimate partnership? There is a lot of discussion around whether robots will take over our jobs and, whilst we may see certain roles being replaced by Artificial Intelligence (see graphic below), many areas will see major growth over the coming years. To create the most efficient workforce, leaders must build a partnership approach between human and machine intelligence to create an inclusive, tech-enabled and forward-thinking company. This will allow businesses to harness the raw processing power and precision of technology, with the output analysed and contextualised by employees. Implemented correctly, this partnership will mean that employees are able to forgo some of the more mundane administrative tasks, in favour of more creative and fulfilling activities. But change is never straightforward, and organisations will need to work hard to identify, nurture and develop their existing workforce and future leaders to amplify what is humanly possible in a digital world. Joining the feedback loop Finally, and perhaps most importantly, leaders undergoing digital transformation must be careful not to create an echo chamber of positive reinforcement for ideas. It’s essential that plans and concepts are socialised prior to committing investment, with a range of stakeholders. To drive the strongest results, feedback and insights should be gathered from customers, employees, investors – and even competitors. This will help businesses to remain agile and fit for purpose, offering leaders insight into the market readiness for proposed changes and allow them to plot a digital transformation timeline. It will also help to ensure that products and services appeal to the audience they were designed for, which is key to a successful digital transformation. Whilst digital does not stand in isolation as the sole driver of business performance, it will have a significant impact on the success or failure of a business. Going forwards, change must be a constant feature for organisations, with agility and continuous adaptation essential. Want to find out more? Click here to read the full whitepaper.

Developing the best blend of technical skills and soft skills is the solution to the Skills Revolution for individuals and employers alike. As technology transforms organisations, skills needs are changing rapidly and companies are struggling to find the talent they need. ManpowerGroup’s report – Robots Need Not Apply: Human Solutions in the Skills Revolution – surveyed 20,000 employers across 42 countries on the anticipated impact of automation on headcount; the functions they expect to be most impacted; and the soft skills that are both of greatest value and hardest to find. The report finds that as companies go digital, in the near-term most will need more people, not fewer. Eighty six percent of employers globally say their headcount will increase or remain flat in the next two years because of automation. Looking inside organisations, the impact varies by function: IT comes out on top as organisations invest in digital skills, and frontline and customer-facing functions follow close behind. In contrast, administrative and office functions expect the greatest decrease in headcount as a result of automation. Overall, the rise in consumerism and the value companies now place on customer service is increasingly evident in the digital world, and human strengths are more valued than in the past. More than half of companies surveyed say communication skills, both written and verbal, are their most valued soft skill, followed by collaboration and problem solving. Digitisation is happening at an unprecedented pace and every industry and function will be impacted. This is good news for people – providing they have the right skills mix to augment rather than compete with technology. Helping people upskill and future-proof themselves will be the defining challenge of our time. Identifying in-demand skills and providing access to employment is the solution for all of us in the Skills Revolution. How to prepare for digital transformation Steps organisations can take to prepare for digital transformation, changing business models and shifting skill needs: Hire for learnability Employers can no longer rely on a spot market for talent. We need people with learnability – the desire and ability to develop in-demand skills to be employable for the long-term. Employability today is less about what you already know and more about your capacity to learn. Encourage a culture of learnability to retain and attract the best talent. Find out more at: learnabilityquotient.com Identify relevant skillsets Set people up to succeed. Map out skill needs, then assess and identify candidates with adjacent skillsets – those skills that are closely connected and can be adapted to new roles. Build on proven talents and equip people to shift from traditional to digital skillsets. Develop digital leaders While 80% of leadership capabilities remain the same – adaptability, drive, endurance and brightness – a new style of leadership is required for the digital age. What got you here, won’t get you there. Leaders today must dare to lead and be prepared to fail fast. They need to nurture learnability, accelerate performance and foster entrepreneurialism. And, of course, they must unleash potential in others. Transforming your workforce for the digital age has immense potential to create value for business, change consumers’ lives and unlock broader societal benefits – as long as leaders are ready. Transformation has to start at the top and leaders need to lead differently today than they may have done in the past. To get digital-ready, leaders should start by asking themselves: Are we prepared for calculated risk and set up to fail fast? Are we agile and open to change, now and throughout the journey of transformation? Are our processes informed by digital insights? How ready are we to upskill for the digital age? How can leaders combine the best of human and machine intelligence to create an inclusive, forward-thinking successful company in the digital age? To download the full report, From C-Suite to Digital Suite: How to Lead Through Digital Transformation, visit: rightmanagement.co.uk/digitalready This article first appeared in the eighth edition of The Human Age Newspaper.

Traditionally, IT departments have been seen as a support service. Their role involved helping businesses achieve their objectives in a practical sense – by supplying devices and troubleshooting, acquiring and installing the systems that allow processes to function. However, the IT department of today is evolving. No longer is it simply a technical back-office function for the business. As technology develops, the IT department’s function and mode of operating has changed from a service provision role to one of strategic involvement. In other words, the IT team is now expected to drive business growth, facilitate technological transformation and ensure digital is firmly at the heart of the organisation. As a result, businesses are increasingly recognising the need to reshape their IT departments and position them as more integral parts of the organisation. The old approach of hiring an IT professional to fill a specific operational need is no longer enough. To ensure the tech function contributes positively, more thought must be put into finding talent with the right skills mix. According to ManpowerGroup’s recent research – Robots Need Not Apply: Human Solutions in the Skills Revolution – the best blend is a combination of soft skills with technical and digital know-how. Based on results from organisations around the world, there are three soft skills in particular that organisations should focus on when hiring IT professionals. We’ve summarised them below in order of importance: 1. Problem Solving – It comes as little surprise that problem solving is one of the most essential skills that IT professionals need to have. However, as organisations strive to deliver more value from their digital assets, the demands on this skill are changing. These days, organisations face an ever-changing and intensifying threat from cyber breaches, which can cause both financial and reputational damage if they fall victim to an attack. As a result, organisations can no longer just look for IT professionals who can solve existing system issues. Instead, businesses need IT professionals who can predict, anticipate and eliminate issues, before they emerge. And whilst organisations can never be fully protected against ever-evolving security threats, this will give them the best opportunity. 2. Communication – Businesses leaders recognise that they can drive more value and better results if they put digital at the heart of all projects. More than ever before, other business functions will need to get involved in the discussions and decision-making process – such as the leadership team, other departments within the organisation, external stakeholders and end users. To get the necessary buy-in and support from key individuals involved in a project or initiative, IT professionals must be prepared to have difficult conversations with these stakeholders. They need to be able to clearly communicate technical matters to non-technical individuals, ensuring they can grasp the value that can be delivered. 3. Collaboration – With the rapid pace of change happening both in and outside of organisations, IT professionals need to be able to partner with other departments or suppliers to ensure projects are completed efficiently. For example, with the much anticipated GDPR coming into place this May, the IT department must collaborate with other departments within the business – including marketing, legal, sales, finance and HR. By working together, an organisational roadmap can be developed and consensus achieved on the route to compliance, ahead of the deadline. Technology is now one of the most important contributors to economic growth. As a result, IT can no longer function as a siloed, standalone department. Instead, it must be a cross-functional, core element of business transformation, contributing to strategy, wider change initiatives and influencing what the company will look like in five to 10 years’ time. With this in mind, it’s important that organisations don’t just focus on finding talent that understand new technology and systems. They also need the soft skills required to solve problems, communicate and collaborate, which will be increasingly valuable to organisations going forward. With the right blend of hard and soft skills, organisations can provide better client service and add value where customers want it most. To find out more, download our whitepaper Robots Need Not Apply: Human Solutions in the Skills Revolution.

The days where getting an education, learning a specific subject or field, and continuing to rely on static knowledge throughout our careers are long gone. Technology has transformed the way organisations operate, so qualifications and technical skills alone no longer guarantee continued career success for IT professionals. Few tech teams work well with only the hard, functional knowledge that it takes to carry out a piece of work. Soft skills are equally as important. Often gained over time, these are the kinds of skills and abilities that make the difference between high performance and low. And, according to our recent research Skills Revolution 2.0, employers are placing a higher value on soft skills and an appetite for continuous skills development when they recruit. To help you to identify and prioritise your development needs, we asked 20,000 employers in 42 countries about the soft skills they think are most important, and why they think they are useful to have. If you want to stand out from the crowd in your next interview and in your career for the long-term, these are the skills you should be mastering. Let’s take a look at the UK’s top six soft skills in the digital age: 1. Communication – One of the most essential talents to have is good communication skills – both written and verbal. In the IT world, this is particularly important as it will help you to better communicate the business value of technical projects to key non-technical stakeholders, making it easier to get buy-in and support from them. 2. Organisation – In today’s fast changing world of work, knowing how to manage your time and prioritise your workload is key to working productively and ensuring deadlines are met. For instance, IT functions need to drive significant change in order to ensure compliance with the GDPR – and, with only a few weeks to go until it comes into force, top organisational skills will be essential. 3. Customer Service – Regardless of whether you’re customer-facing or dealing with colleagues internally, good ‘customer service’ enhances the reputation of both your business and your own personal brand. Most importantly, it’s a way to build trust with those you’re dealing with. With the IT function being an integral part of the business, the various business departments depend on your knowledge of the functionality of systems, data and processes across the organisation. 4. Problem solving – The need for solving problems can vary and depend on the type of issue, as some problems are bigger or more complicated than others. However, IT professionals are faced with new problems on a daily basis – whether it’s related to the business systems, data or processes. Being able to identify an issue, find a possible solution and then implement it is a necessity. When so much of the business world relies on technology, even a small amount of IT downtime is bound to have a significant impact on the bottom line. This skill is fundamental to the world of IT, particularly given the increasing number of cyber security threats and attacks. 5. Collaboration – Having the ability to collaborate with individuals within your team, other non-technical business functions and external stakeholders is essential in today’s connected world. Not only can it ensure a piece of work or project is carried out efficiently and completed successfully, but it helps to achieve long-term success overall. Work gets done quicker; vital knowledge is shared; multiple solutions are identified; and, most importantly, new relationships are built. 6. Leadership – Strong leadership skills aren’t just about ensuring your organisation meets its financial objectives. It’s about being proactive with finding new and better ways of working. It’s also about taking control and making decisions when it matters the most – particularly when faced with a cyberattack. It’s not just those at the top of the organisation who need strong leadership skills, either. With the constant changes that are happening in the world of work, being able to evolve, motivate and adapt your team to ensure it remains aligned with business goals is vital, no matter your level of seniority. Ultimately, if you’re equipped with a mix of these soft skills in addition to your technical skills, you’ll stand out from the crowd in your existing role and will be attractive candidate to any potential employers. It’s also worth remembering that learning never stops. The key to long-term success is to continuously develop your soft and technical skills – to continually adapt to the changing requirements of your job, and ensure you remain employable in the long-term. To find out more, download our whitepaper Robots Need Not Apply: Human Solutions in the Skills Revolution.

Stefano Scabbio, ManpowerGroup’s President of Northern Europe, Mediterranean & Eastern Europe, was part of ManpowerGroup’s delegation at the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) annual meeting in Davos. We caught up with Stefano to understand how the Skills Revolution directly links to the themes discussed in Davos, and what the implications are for today’s leaders. How does this year’s WEF theme ‘Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World’ relate to the Skills Revolution? This year’s theme made the case for renewed commitment to international collaboration as a way of solving critical global challenges. Among the numerous agendas addressed at Davos, the focus of the business agenda was on helping industry and government leaders prepare for a Digital Age where new skills emerge as fast as others become obsolete. In this Skills Revolution upskilling and reskilling the workforce for the jobs of today and tomorrow will be critical for organisations to find the talent they need to remain competitive and for individuals to remain employable. We can’t mention the rapidly changing geopolitical, economic or business landscapes without considering Brexit. While the true impact of Brexit remains to be seen, what message should UK employers be sending to talent right now? No matter where we live, the environment we operate in is characterised by volatility and uncertainty and there’s no doubt that these features are here to stay. Adding the impact of Brexit to our ever-evolving world of work, it’s clear that those with the right skills will have the most choice when it comes to future job opportunities, and where and how they will work. As part of the ongoing Brexit negotiations, we have been given certainty that EU nationals in the UK will be protected post-Brexit, as will UK nationals in the EU. Nonetheless, there is still more work to be done to ensure the UK remains attractive to skilled talent across Europe. Employers will need to make it clear that they welcome people with the right skills and will help them to navigate the changes ahead, including helping them to remain employable. We also ought to bear in mind that the factors that motivate workers in the UK aren’t necessarily the same for workers elsewhere in Europe. For example, when making career decisions, our research has found that UK workers consider the type of work to be the most important consideration. However in Poland, compensation is the biggest consideration. Employers should be aware of local candidate preferences, and leverage these insights to ensure they are appealing to the talent they wish to attract. One of the solutions ManpowerGroup spoke about at the WEF was the importance of skills adjacencies. Why are these so critical? Skills and access to employment will be the solution to the Skills Revolution. As employers, we need to identify skills adjacencies that create clear career paths from education to employment. We need accelerated reskilling programmes with faster, shorter bursts of on-the-job and experiential training. And we must shift more people from declining industries to growth sectors. Digital skills and expertise will be essential for almost all workers, from entry-level to leadership. Mapping adjacent skillsets will guide organisations, drive productivity and motivate even the most disillusioned individuals. Can you share an example with us of what ManpowerGroup is doing to support skills adjacencies? How does this actually work in practice? There are many examples of what ManpowerGroup is doing to upskill and reskill for growth sector roles. I’d like to share a local example with you. Automation is changing how work gets done and we must find solutions for workers who are displaced from declining industries. This public-private partnership, led by employers, offers a compelling upskilling solution and is transforming hiring demand and revitalising communities. In Italy, the world’s most advanced motorsport manufacturers – Ferrari, Maserati, Lamborghini and Dallara – were struggling to find enough skilled workers to fabricate the stronger, lighter-weight components used in their high performance cars. Partnering with local technical schools, universities and government, ManpowerGroup’s Experis team developed the Labs and Academy Training Centre to bridge the talent shortage and meet marketplace demand. We deliver training in seven Italian cities that helps upskill and reskill displaced textile workers for in-demand roles in high-end automotive manufacturing and design. Leveraging a uniquely targeted curriculum, the Experis Lab has retrained hundreds of workers. Scaling across Europe and US in 2017, the programme has placement rates of 70% and increases the earning potential of participants by 30%. This is a formula that can be scaled elsewhere too. As we navigate the Skills Revolution, what are the implications for today’s leaders? There’s no doubt that upskilling people, identifying adjacent skills and leading through transformation is top of the agenda for business leaders, politicians and economists alike. Leaders must shift the conversation from ‘will robots steal our jobs?’ to action on how to harness human strengths in a digital world. In the Skills Revolution, we can and must shape a brighter digital future for everyone, where artificial intelligence and robotics augment what’s humanly possible. This will help to create forward-thinking, successful companies and societies alike.

Demand for new IT Security skills has dropped by 5% in the past year, according to the latest Tech Cities Job Watch report from Experis. While some may interpret this fall in demand as meaning that it’s becoming less of a priority, it may actually prove the opposite: that a cultural shift has occurred in how organisations view and manage IT security. Countless organisations have fallen victim to hacks and security breaches in recent years, causing significant financial and reputational damage. Add to this the impending introduction of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and it soon becomes clear why IT Security is firmly on the boardroom agenda for 2018 and beyond. In spite of this, the latest Tech Cities Job Watch report reveals that demand for new IT Security skills has fallen over the last year. The decline in demand is most acute in the permanent market, which has fallen by 10% year-on-year. Furthermore, the research also found that the average salary for a permanent cyber security role (£60,004) is much lower than a Big Data specialist can expect (£70,945). These figures paint a complex picture of the cyber security landscape. While hacks are on the rise, the slowing demand indicates that businesses no longer require as many IT Security specialists. The Internet of Things has transformed the way that companies across every industry work; and cyber security is now everyone’s responsibility – not just the IT department’s. From Web Development to Big Data and Mobile, businesses are conscious that IT Security needs to be factored into all digital projects from the start and employers are upskilling their existing workforce in response. However, in what is being dubbed ‘the year of regulation’ and following several years dominated by major hacks and security breaches, businesses need to ensure that they are not resting on their laurels when it comes to keeping pace with the ever more sophisticated cyber threats they will face. A cultural shift in IT security management Increasingly, businesses recognise that IT Security is now a core competency that’s woven into a wide range of both technical and non-technical roles. Consequently, employers are looking to upskill their entire workforce in security matters, rather than solely relying on the talents of specialists. While this is a necessary step, as cyber threats become ever more sophisticated, businesses shouldn’t neglect recruiting the specialists they need to keep pace. This cultural shift in the management of IT Security can also be seen in the contractor market. Tech Cities Job Watch found that demand for new IT Security contractors has increased by 24% year-on-year, while day rates dropped by 13%. Instead of looking to contractors to manage large-scale, specialist security transformation projects, organisations are using them to plug short-term skills gaps. By allocating them to lower value, higher volume security tasks, they’re able to free up the time of permanent staff members to focus on more complex, strategic transformation projects. The public sector impact Looking more broadly at the findings, there is also evidence that developments in the public sector are having a significant and long-lasting impact on the jobs market; with budget cuts and the introduction of IR35 artificially forcing down the market value of IT Security contractor day rates. The extensive architecture and high-profile nature of public sector work will always ensure the volume demand of IT Security contractor work, but the downward pressure on day rates could see the supply of workers transition to permanent roles in the private sector – potentially leaving the public sector understaffed and vulnerable to attack. Many contractors are uniting in response to this, forming their own contractor businesses to work on a subscription based model. If this trend continues, we could see these new players disrupt the traditional large enterprise outsourcers in 2018 and beyond. As artificial intelligence and machine learning become more sophisticated, we expect the IT Security landscape to evolve once again in the years ahead. Enhanced security management tools have the potential to support threat detection and lower the required organisational headcount. While the road ahead may be unclear, organisations need to think more long-term about IT Security, and make it a priority for the many, not the few. To find out more, visit techcities.experis.co.uk This article first appeared in the eighth edition of The Human Age Newspaper.

Technology is transforming the way we live, work and lead – calling for new thinking and new ways of doing things. Wherever companies are on their digital journey, they need to be more agile than ever before, in order to unleash human potential, develop skilled talent and pair it with the best technology. Forward-thinking organisations must plan ahead to be prepared for all eventualities, including future skill requirements and new workforce structures. Harnessing Human Strengths in a Digital World The Human Age newspaper is our overview of the workforce trends which are challenging employers to think differently about their workforce. In this eighth edition, we’re proud to share some of the exciting ways we are partnering with organisations to steer their workforce through the digital era. In addition to highlighting our strategic thinking on current and future issues impacting our clients, this edition also explores the vital role that human strengths, human ingenuity and human capital play, to ensure our talent can augment rather than compete with technology. Highlights from the latest edition of the Human Age newspaper include: Supporting Sky on their journey to Total Talent Management Managing Apprenticeship End Point Assessments Digital Transformation – A Special Feature Implementing Career Management the Right Way Upskilling Workers in IT Security The Impact of Digital Transformation on End Users The Evolution of Logistics Recruitment DOWNLOAD Related posts: From C-Suite to the Digital Suite: How to Lead through Digital Transformation 23/01/2018 From digitisation, data generation and automation; to artificial intelligence, private and public clouds and [...] Read More 0 Robots Need Not Apply: Human Solutions in the Skills Revolution 23/01/2018 Technology is transforming organisations, skills needs are changing rapidly, and companies cannot find the talent [...] Read More 0 The Skills Revolution 17/01/2017 Rarely a day goes by without news of digitisation, artificial intelligence and virtual reality impacting the [...] Read More 0

As one of Europe’s leading entertainment companies, Sky serves over 22 million customers across five countries. Employing more than 25,000 people across the UK and Ireland, Sky engages with all different types of permanent and contingent workers. ManpowerGroup has partnered with Sky since 2010. We spoke with Alison Todd, Director of Talent Acquisition, regarding Sky’s approach to Total Talent Management and how their journey has evolved. We invite you to watch the video to see the full interview, or alternatively you can read an overview below. What do you perceive to be the greatest challenges in attracting and retaining the best talent over the next five years? There is a great deal of talk about attracting and retaining talent, considering such areas as wellbeing, purpose at work, work-life balance and the working environment. For me, there are three main challenges to consider: Making work meaningful, looking at how people fit in and what contribution they can make. It is managers who provide the context and culture to help their teams link the work they do to the aims or goals of the business – get this right, and you greatly increase your chances of retention. You need to give your employees the development they need, the opportunity to grow their skills and to stretch their experiences at work. Finally, you need to develop a positive working environment. While great offices and facilities are fine, fundamentally it’s good managers who are the key. Coming to work must be a motivating and rewarding experience for people. In terms of attraction and retention, if this is not right, they won’t stay. Externally, you need to be able to tell the story that sets your organisation apart. Candidates need to understand what it is really like to work for you. It’s about the give and the get. If your employer brand is in line with what potential candidates are interested in and what they want to achieve, their interest will be sparked. How important do you feel a Total Talent Management approach is to dealing with future talent challenges? At Sky, our approach is to put a strong engagement layer in place. Recruitment Managers work with HR Business Partners and with the business to enable us to understand the organisational challenges and, ultimately, to plan together. Recruitment has historically been seen as a reactive service but, to get ahead in the talent race, it is essential that we understand the total workforce needs for the short, medium and long-term. The reason this is important for Total Talent Management is that the solution the business wants isn’t always the right one and we need that ‘expert’ layer in place to advise. This allows the right discussions to take place to ensure the business is taking the correct approach. It is challenging for suppliers to get under the skin of the business if they do not have that engagement layer and have been contracted purely to deliver on-demand. Which solutions have you utilised throughout your partnership with ManpowerGroup and how are these supporting you in your journey to Total Talent Management? Our core relationship is in support of recruitment in our volume permanent space and to meet all of our temporary resource needs. The permanent roles we hire are in Retail Estate, Contact Centres and Home Service, where we hire engineers to install Sky into customer homes. In total, we hire around 4,000 people per year into permanent roles. We have found that there are different needs across these volume areas so we need to think differently to address these. One size does not fit all. Our core business recruitment is delivered as standard, however, in addition to this, we have worked with ManpowerGroup on a number of projects to solve the business challenges and work through how we can reach the people we need in the market, for example, women in Home Service. On the temporary worker front, we have a long-standing relationship with Experis, who work with the business to meet our short-term professional and non-professional needs. Our Recruitment Managers and ManpowerGroup work with the business to agree the blend of temporary and permanent workers to optimise the hiring needs. This brings us back full circle to Total Talent Management, where we don’t just respond to short-term, operational demands in the business. This blended approach is often required for innovation projects, where we need large numbers of people very quickly and this is where we will blend temporary and permanent hires. What barriers have you faced in developing a Total Talent Management strategy within your organisation and how have you overcome these? However organisations decide to meet their Total Talent needs, be that insource, outsource or a mixture of the two, there are barriers to making it work well. Communication must be seamless, but there are many things that can trip us up on the way. The main barriers we have faced as an organisation are: Building a common understanding – If parts of the organisation don’t have a common understanding of what you are trying to achieve, you could easily travel in different directions. Lack of governance – Whatever the relationships are, if you lack good governance, there will be problems ahead. You might set yourself up well at the beginning, but you must nurture these relationships to deliver the strategy and continue successfully. This is particularly common where you mix the insource and outsource model. You may relinquish responsibility for delivery if you outsource, but the active nurturing of the relationship will get the best out of both sides. Lack of flexibility – If you decide to outsource part or all of the operation, or if there is a lack of flexibility and unwillingness to work with a fast-changing business, then the operation is likely to fail. Most businesses change frequently, as we do here at Sky, so you need to be adaptable and open minded. To help address these challenges, I believe that if you set up formal mechanisms, create a strong governance structure, have a good plan and all stakeholders agree to the direction of travel, then you are set on a good course. You must have good connections with the business and, regardless of who provides the service (whether it’s in-house or outsourced), relationships are critical to understanding and responding to changes in the business. What benefits are you seeing from taking a more holistic approach to your talent strategy? Having an overview of all the types of talent we engage with provides a rich perspective in terms of the overall needs of the business. It gives us real context when we look across the whole business rather than just reacting to an individual demand. We can see synergies and identify where we can move talent within the organisation, rather than have people leave and new people come in. It is much easier to then decide – from the bigger picture – what roles we will need to go external for. Working across the supplier’s broader capability can mean that we can flex resource in and out of different solutions. Our business needs change very quickly and our solutions need to be flexible. Clearly there are commercial benefits working at scale too. And lastly, what tips and advice would you give those who are considering adopting a Total Talent Management strategy? Listen to the business! Create a solution that fits your culture and organisation. Communication with the business is critical – before, during and after any transformation to a different approach. Give yourself the chance to think before you dive in… another business’ solution might not be right for your own. This article first appeared in the eighth edition of The Human Age Newspaper.