Dive Brief:
- The pandemic has decreased demand for some roles, such as customer service jobs, according to a June 10 Randstad Sourceright report; at the same time, demand for pharma researchers and others is up.
- The report mapped demand for customer service, engineering, finance, pharmaceutical (pharma) research and development (R&D), sales and software development roles. And an understanding of what key jobs and skills have increased in demand during the COVID-19 crisis can help employers recruit the right candidates, according to Randstad.
- Hiring in the pharma R&D space increased with clinical trial managers and research associates most in demand — 40% and 50% respectively. The demand is due to pharmaceutical manufacturers working to develop a COVID-19 vaccine, according to How is key talent in the US impacted by COVID-19? Meanwhile, from February to March, customer service roles experienced the greatest decrease in demand (47%). Engineering, finance and sales roles all experienced a 34% decrease, followed by a 22% decrease in demand for software development roles.
Dive Insight:
Recruiting will continue to play a significant role in business strategy, according to experts. In the coming decade, talent acquisition, retention and upskilling will drive the success of business transformation as a whole, not just the HR function, EY Partner and the Americas Leader for People Advisory Services Kim Billeter told HR Dive in February.
The COVID-19 pandemic may, however, redefine the skills recruiters seek to best support a company. "The economic slowdown brought about by the pandemic has forced companies to focus on what jobs and skills are truly essential and most valuable to their businesses," Sue Marcus, regional president at Randstad Sourceright North America, said in a statement.
But in addition to hiring talent with the necessary skills for economic growth, upskilling current employees may also be necessary. In survey results released March 6, Peppercomm and Echo Research examined perceptions of how well companies are upskilling workforces. Of the 1,000 employees surveyed in the U.S. and U.K., more than two-thirds agreed their companies provide training and instruction for upskilling. In comparison, one-third of employees said they aren't getting what they need to contribute effectively.
Some employers have made their efforts public. For example, in October, PwC committed $3 billion to its New World, New Skills program, which aimed to offer all 276,000 PwC employees digital skills training. As of May, tens of thousands of employees had participated in advanced training.
