Scarcity on the labor market is hampering economic growth. Time to make better use of available talent by investing in developing their skills – a win-win for both companies and employees.  

2018 is kicking in, so we’re taking the time to look back on the past year and look towards the next one. One of the biggest challenges will be to foster economic growth while we are facing labor shortages.  It seems unlikely that the trend of a growing number in vacancies will change in 2018.

In the past, companies had the luxury of being able to select from the excess labor force on the market. The pain of dealing with scarcity displaces this luxury completely.

Nevertheless, this scarcity triggers creative thinking and opens up opportunities both for companies and employees.

Opportunities for companies and employees

Companies can no longer select the ideal candidate with all the required skills and knowledge from the market. Instead, they will need to attract unexploited talent and further cultivate this talent in house. The opportunity for companies lies in the way they are dealing with this process. In short, companies are providing the springboard to incite unexploited talent.

On the other hand, employees or job seekers feel that companies are no longer looking for the perfect profile, and that they are more than ever willing to invest in development in order to find that diamond in the rough. This feeling motivates people to learn new skills and to reorient themselves. Consequently, people are looking around and are willing to jump.

So, let 2018 be the year where everybody who is willing to jump may find his/her springboard!