Unemployment in the euro zone - countries whose currency is the euro - reached its lowest level since 1998 last December, figures from statistics agency Eurostat show. Still, the labor market tightness is becoming more acute, fixed and flex.
Flex in high demand (again)
While the labor market for permanent staff has been scarce for some time, the limits for the flexible labor market are now almost reached as well. The number of offers on assignments for highly skilled work has plummeted: it is now five times lower than five quarters ago. Secondment agencies have sold out and are trying to supplement their supply by recruiting new staff, but are running into the wall. In addition, the sourcing pressure on highly skilled freelancers is skyrocketing: nearly 7 out of 10 are approached at least once a quarter for an assignment.
Finding & engaging talent
This hyper scarcity in the flex market is new in the Netherlands. In order to recruit, bind and retain talent in these times, it is necessary for clients to pull out all the stops. It requires creativity and forces organizations to look at the entire workforce in an integral way. The form of contract is less relevant; bringing in the right talent comes first.
If organizations do not have their employer branding and corporate social responsibility in order, they will miss the boat. Embedding them in the business is required, especially to attract and retain millennials - the growing group of workers. Weak employer branding is currently being compensated by organizations by hiring hordes of recruiters. While the answer lies in two areas; data-driven recruiting methods and targeting alternative audiences in the job market.
In the Talent Monitor "Hyper Scarcity in the Labor Market," we provide unique insights based on Intelligence Group's recruitment data and HeadFirst Group's hiring data. The report is free to download from our hfgroup.headfirst.group website.