In these impending recessionary times against the backdrop of higher inflation and talent crunch driven by great resignation, how does one steer their Talent Management strategy? Businesses are feeling the pinch more than ever before. In order to stay afloat, many are cutting costs wherever possible. In its recent CFO Survey, Gartner Research indicates that hiring and retaining talent is the foremost challenge to be dealt with followed by business forecasting and reducing costs in the right places. This further underscores the growing impact of inflation and macroeconomic uncertainty. On the other hand, US job statistics released by Job Openings and Labour Turnover Survey show that the number of openings continues to be significantly higher at 11.2 million jobs in July 2022, twice that of the available human capital to fulfill those openings. Business Impact is adverse due to two reasons. First, employees switching to high paying jobs leave a chasm in the organization which takes a long time to fix. Second, the job market is inflationary as employers need to be paying top dollar in order to get the right talent across levels.
Why Talent Management is increasingly a Speed Bump
For companies who may be hiring, it is essential to find the needle in the haystack and secure the appropriate talent for your organization. In order to do that, being open to diverse talent landscapes and having a keen understanding of what your business goals are will allow you to navigate these choppy waters. Furthermore, being nimble with your staffing needs and rolling out measures that withstand any cyclicality will be critical in order to maintain efficiency and effectiveness. Coming to budgets, It's more important than ever to keep a tight grip on your talent management budget. As the economy slows and businesses enter into a period of recessionary hiring slow-down, the competition for getting the right talent will only increase. In order to avoid being caught in a talent crunch, being proactive about your talent management strategy, you can weather the storm of a potential recession and come out on top. Incurring higher costs by offering creative incentives such as flexible work arrangements or training opportunities to employees become unavoidable if such a talent pool is being developed in-house. However, this is counterintuitive to better cost management for certain roles and responsibilities. So, how can your business manage the three-fold problems of higher inflation, talent crunch and business continuity?