Just as Shakespeare’s Romeo bemoaned the loss of his true love, employers up and down the country are lamenting the skills shortage in the UK.
Everywhere you turn, someone is talking about how they "just can't find any skilled or good staff". Job advertisements unfilled for months, businesses struggling to keep up with customer demand, the list goes on…
And it’s not just idle chat - the statistics back it up. According to Monsters new report- Flexible Future: UK Hiring Outlook 2022 – despite 90% of UK employers planning to recruit this year (up from 66% in 2021), 63% of those employers failed to fill a role because of skills shortages.
But the skills shortage in the UK is not just an issue for businesses- it’s an issue for the economy as a whole. In fact, a recent report warned that the UK could face a £30 billion yearly hit if we don't do something about the skills gap. And with the economy already in turmoil with the pandemic, Brexit and sky-rocketing inflation - can we really be affording to be losing more money?
No we can’t. Which is why it’s time to take a closer look at the skills shortage in the UK, and figure out how we can find the talent we need to fill the roles - without having to pay over the odds.
Where did it all go wrong?
Well, it seems that the skills shortage in the UK has been slowly brewing for years. But there are a number of factors that have come to a head in recent times and made it even worse.
The COVID-19 pandemic
There is no denying that the pandemic has had a huge impact on businesses and the economy. With businesses forced to close their doors and people being furloughed or made redundant, it has been a tough few years.
We sadly lost the lives of some of our best people to the COVID-19 virus. People with years of experience and knowledge. And while we can never replace them, we have been left to fill the gaps they have left behind, creating a further dent in the skills shortage escalade in the UK.
Many of those people made redundant during the pandemic - especially over 50's - have decided to take early retirement. In fact, regardless of whether they were furloughed or made redundant during the pandemic, since the outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020, workers over 50 are leaving the labour market in flurries.
Can you blame them? After a year of being locked down, working from home and worrying about their health, it’s no surprise that they want to enjoy an early retirement while they still can.
But this has had a knock-on effect on businesses who are now struggling to find experienced workers to fill those roles. And with the number of people retiring set to increase in the coming years as the baby boomer generation reaches retirement age, the skills shortage in the UK is only going to get worse.
A shift in priorities
Then there are the younger generations who are rethinking their work preferences. In the past, many young people would have automatically gone into traditional permanent, work in the office jobs. But now we are seeing a move towards more creative and flexible working arrangements, such as gigging and contracting.
According to research, 46% of millennial's (25-40 years old) would consider freelance work in the future and 76% would prefer a hybrid or remote working arrangement. This is a huge shift in thinking and it means that businesses are going to have to adapt if they want to fill up the skills shortage and attract the best talent.
Brexit
And then there is Brexit. While the final impact of Brexit is yet to be seen, there is no doubt that it has already had an impact on businesses and the economy. We have seen businesses move their operations out of the UK, and we have seen a significant increase in the number of highly-skilled EU citizens leaving the UK since the vote to leave.
It’s time to switch things up!
When it comes to combatting the UK’s skills shortage, traditional methods of advertising roles on your standard job-boards and social media platforms are just not enough anymore.
You need to think outside the box. Because at the end of the day, the best talent aren’t trawling through job-boards or LinkedIn every day. So you need to find a way to reach them.
Use social media to your advantage
Instead of just posting up a job advertisement on your business page or in relevant groups on Linkedin and Facebook, dig a little deeper- that's where you will find your gems.
LinkedIn is an excellent resource for finding talented individuals who may not be looking to move. By using relevant keywords in your searches, you can find people who are the perfect fit for your business and who may not even be aware of the opportunities available to them.
For example, if you are looking for a web developer, you could try searching for keywords such as "web developer," "PHP developer," "Wordpress developer," etc. This will give you a list of all the LinkedIn members who have that keyword listed in their profile.
You can then take things a step further by filtering your search results by location, job title, company size, or other criteria that is important to you.
Get searching on job boards
Job boards aren’t just for posting up job adverts anymore. They are also a great way to find talented individuals who may not be actively looking for a new role.
Indeed, Monster, and Reed are just some of the job boards that you can use to search for candidates. Just like with LinkedIn, by using relevant keywords in your searches, you can find people who have the skills and experience that you are looking for.
If you really want to get a heads up over the current skills shortage in the UK, you can also set up job alerts on these job boards so that you are notified as soon as a new candidate matching your criteria is registered. This saves you time and means that you can be the first to approach them with an opportunity.
Get creative with your job descriptions
When writing job descriptions, be creative and try to think outside the box. Highlight the unique selling points of your business and what makes you different from other companies.
Place yourself in the candidate’s shoes. What would they be looking for in a role? What kind of company would they want to work for?
If there is one thing that you can do to overcome the current skills shortage in the UK, it’s to stop making your job descriptions a wish list of everything you want in a candidate. Be realistic about the skills and experience you are looking for and focus on what the candidate can bring to your business. This will make your job descriptions more appealing to talented individuals.
Use your network
Your business is likely to have a large network of contacts, so why not tap into that?
Ask your customers, friends, and family if they know anyone who would be a good fit for the role you are trying to fill. Ask them to share your job advertisement on their social media or with their networks. You never know who might be connected to your ideal candidate.
Use employee referral programs
Employee referral programs can be a great way to find talented candidates.
Ask your employees if they know anyone who would be a good fit for the role and offer them a reward for any successful referrals.
This will incentivize your employees to help fill the skills shortage within your business. It will also help to build a strong team spirit within your business.
Attend job fairs and networking events
Job fairs and networking events are a great way to meet potential candidates in person.
Attend events that are relevant to your industry and make sure you have plenty of business cards on hand to give out. You can also use these events as an opportunity to promote your brand and let people know what it is like to work for your company
You never know, you might just find your next star employee!
Talent hunting goes beyond recruitment
Of course, recruitment isn’t the only way to combat the skills shortage and attract talent to your business. You also need to focus on retaining the talent you already have. This means creating a working environment that is conducive to creativity and innovation. Offer employees opportunities for career progression, flexible working arrangements and most importantly, makes sure you throw away the autocratic management style!
If you can do all of this, then you'll be well on your way to building a strong team of talented individuals who will help to take your business to the next level and wave goodbye to the woeful skills shortage we are currently facing in the UK.