Talent, recession worries plague CEOs

Dive Brief:

CEOs in a new global survey said that attracting and retaining talent and anticipating a possible recession are their biggest internal and external worries for 2019. Based on responses from 800 CEOs and 600 senior executives, the Conference Board's C-Suite Challenge 2019 also cited international political instability, leadership development and trade as top concerns.
The CEOs surveyed also expressed concern about creating new business models caused by emerging technology, as well as more regulation around data privacy.
HR executives ranked the development of flexible project teams as their top approach to managing future workforces. The report found, however, that HR executives and CEOs aren't working in tandem to prioritize the evaluation and rewarding of work performed in teams.

Dive Insight:

Finding high-quality talent is HR's top priority for 2019, according to a recent XpertHR survey. In fact, 64% of the 800 HR professionals polled in that survey called the sourcing of talent "very or extremely challenging." Respondents also cited managing performance, providing professional development opportunities and aligning talent retention strategy with business objectives as "very or extremely" challenging. And as the Conference Board report shows, CEOs across the globe recognize the challenge, too.

Finding quality talent has always been challenging, but it appears that recruiters won't see a reprieve from the employee-driven labor market and months of low unemployment any time soon.

In response to these forces, recruiters have been rethinking their traditional strategies, turning to contingent workers, looking beyond traditional talent pools for candidates, marketing their organization's brand and leveraging the use of data analytics to streamline and personalize the hiring process and improve hiring outcomes.

Addtionally, in-demand benefits and perks, such as flexible work schedules, career development opportunities, paid leave, meaningful work and recognition, should be part of a hiring strategy whenever possible, experts suggest. And because money remains the greatest motivator for accepting a job offer, as multiple studies report, employers might need to review their compensation strategies to ensure wages are competitive.