Prior to the start of COVID-19, many Canadians were having trouble filling vacant jobs. This is not because there are not enough jobs, but rather because Canadian employers were struggling to find highly skilled workers.
According to a research report published in 2018, 40% of Canadian small and medium businesses have difficulty finding qualified candidates, with Ontario, British Columbia, and Atlantic Canada being the hardest-hit provinces.
What does the labour shortage cost?
Currently, the cost of leaving a position vacant can be as high as $50,000 per day, depending on the position. Open positions have a negative ripple effect in that they may hurt existing employees, both in terms of uncertainty and workload, affect customer confidence, decrease sales and impact referrals.
If you are struggling to find skilled workers, what can you do about it?
How can you bridge the skills gap?
Train current employees
Promoting internally has always been less costly than hiring new talent. The cost of recruiting a new employee may include recruitment fees, advertising, recruiting technology and training. While promoting from within my require the need for a pay increase, the halo effects can be immeasurable including the positive impact on employee morale, increased engagement and loyalty.
We need to prepare our current workforce for tomorrow, so they are primed to fill vacancies that become available.
Use technology and digitize where possible
If your organization is having trouble finding new talent to onboard consistently, consider a review of your organizational processes. Analyzing workflows and finding solutions to improve efficiencies will enable you to streamline and automate processes which in turn will free up your teams to focus on higher-value activities such as customer care.
Develop strong human resource policies
Companies that have strong HR policies are more likely to retain existing employees, attract new talent, and grow more quickly and improve the bottom line even faster. Strong HR policies are 66% more likely to generate annual sales growth in excess of 10%.
Building a foundation
Now that the labour market has contracted, it is up to employers to invest in their people with training, apprenticeship and other learning and development programs. Technology will continue to alter the way we work, so we need to make sure we are nimble and adaptable. There are more learning opportunities today than ever before, helping individuals and organizations bridge the skills gap which benefits everyone.
As an entrepreneur myself, I know how important it is to invest in my employees; which is why I want to help Canadian organizations stay competitive when hiring potential talent. Consider booking a consultation with me to discuss how investing in your employees today will set you up for ongoing success.
