Business Agility Critical to Post-Pandemic Workforce and Economic Recovery

Randstad Sourceright Talent Trends research suggests strategic investment in talent will lead to market share gains as economy rebounds

ATLANTA, June 23, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Organizations that build an agile workforce and make strategic investments in human capital during the coronavirus crisis will be best positioned to gain market share and overtake competitors, according to a new Talent Trends report released today by Randstad Sourceright.

"Talent Trends, COVID-19 & the future of work," which draws from a global survey of more than 800 human capital and C-suite leaders across 17 markets, identifies which trends will be key for companies to thrive in a post COVID-19 world. These include: the creation of an agile workforce, utilization of talent analytics, adoption of digital workflows, managing the employer brand, and investment in HR technology and reskilling programs.

"COVID-19 has had an enormous and unexpected impact on the world's health and economy," said Rebecca Henderson, CEO of Randstad Global Businesses. "Perhaps the most important lesson to be learned from a business perspective is that human capital and business leaders need to expect the unexpected. The only way to be able to thrive when crisis hits, and subsequently when things stabilize, is to be agile; agile in business strategy, workforce strategy, employee reskilling strategy and tech strategy. That mindset applies both to organizations that faced unprecedented demand during the pandemic as well as companies whose business came to a grinding halt as the economy slowed."

The new Talent Trends report also reveals that organizations are increasingly using data and technology to predict needs within their business and fill talent gaps quickly. Nearly half (47 percent) of respondents said they were spending more on predictive talent analytics, and 64 percent indicated that they were already investing significantly or moderately on analytics capabilities. A vast majority (81 percent) viewed analytics as critical in their ability to acquire talent - a sentiment that has been steadily rising since 2016.

"Companies will have to prepare their workforces to adapt to unpredictable market conditions in the future," said Cindy Keaveney, Chief People Officer at Randstad Sourceright. "To do so will require embracing HR technologies that provide greater insight and the flexibility to deploy talent quickly based on demand and market factors."

The report signals that companies are embracing this change. Human capital leaders were less fearful that digital transformation was moving too fast (45 percent compared to 60 percent in 2019).

Technology can also aid in post-pandemic recruitment, particularly in competitive sectors like healthcare and software development, where demand is high and talent may be scarce.

Additionally, 80 percent of human capital and C-suite leaders surveyed said they plan to enhance their talent experience in 2020, with 49 percent investing in candidate assessment tools and half buying candidate relationship management (CRM) platforms. Even before the crisis, 93 percent of leaders viewed a positive talent experience as crucial to attracting top talent.

2020 Talent Trends Report Highlights

Data Defines the Labor Market: Nearly half (47%) of respondents said they were spending more on
predictive talent analytics and 6% indicated that they were already investing significantly or moderately
on analytics capabilities. The vast majority (81%) viewed analytics as critical in their ability to acquire talent.

Candidate Experience is Crucial: 80% of human capital and C-suite leaders plan to enhance their
talent experience, with 49% of those surveyed saying they are investing in candidate assessment tools,
while half are buying candidate relationship management (CRM) platforms.

Hire for today, upskill for tomorrow: 48% of organizations were upskilling their employees, while
38% were reskilling workers for different roles.

More findings are available in "Talent Trends, COVID-19 & the future of work."

About Randstad Sourceright
Randstad Sourceright is a global talent solutions leader, driving the talent acquisition and human capital management strategies for the world's most successful employers. We empower these companies by leveraging a Human Forward strategy that balances the use of innovative technologies with expert insights, supporting both organizations and people in realizing their true potential.

As an operating company of Randstad N.V. - the world's leading global provider of HR services with revenue of € 23.7 billion - Randstad Sourceright's subject matter experts and thought leaders around the world continuously build and evolve our solutions across recruitment process outsourcing (RPO), managed services programs (MSP) and total talent solutions. In 2019, Randstad helped more than 2 million candidates find a meaningful job with one of our 280,000 clients in 38 markets around the world and trained and reskilled more than 350,000 people. Read more at randstadsourceright.com

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