On 5th September, TALiNT Partners brought together industry experts and members of our recruitment leader network to the Haymarket Hotel in London to explore how recruiters can capitalise on global growth opportunities. With a focus on global workforce trends, growth markets, and how to optimise technology and compliance, the event provided insights on how to minimise the risks and maximise the rewards.
For those not yet in TALiNT Partners network, here are some key takeaways:
Flexible workforces are reshaping the industry
Denis Pennel, Managing Director of the World Employment Confederation, highlighted the increasing mobility and flexibility of the global workforce, noting that “because people are going to work more flexibly, they are going to move more often – which is a good thing for the industry.” He shone a light on their “The Work We Want” campaign, and pointed to a key trend, especially in Europe, where ageing populations and skills shortages are driving businesses to tap into more marginalised talent pools. This ranges from ex-convicts to refugees and migrant workers. “The speed with which Ukrainian refugees were able to be fed into workforces around Europe showed that it can be done with the right political will,” he observed.
Amy Davies, Managing Director of PGC Group, observed that elections always slow down hiring decisions and some legislation changes, but the trend towards a more remote workforce and more flexible solutions is growing. Amy predicted that 50% of the US workforce will be contracted by 2030, particularly in sectors like engineering, marketing, and the creative industries, as businesses shift to more flexible and remote working models to compete for talent.
Agile workforce solutions, offshoring & augmentation
Olly Harris, Global Managing Director of Strategic Clients at Page Outsourcing, underscored the growing importance of agility in recruitment. He reflected on how employers are increasingly relying on offshoring as a more cost-effective source of on-demand talent, particularly US firms tapping into LATAM talent, and staff augmentation to train & deploy people with the right skills. He also highlighted increasingly complex workforce legislation as a barrier to new growth markets, like Croatia and Slovakia for example, and an opportunity for compliance solutions like Employer of Record to open up these markets.
Legislation challenges and compliance opportunities
Demand for global talent is growing around the world, but regional variations in regulation and politicised legislation in a record year for elections is creating more complexity.
Greetje Brosens, Chief Sales Officer of Workwell, observed that there is huge demand for global talent, including contractors, in countries like Germany and the Netherlands due to shrinking workforces. The regulatory landscape however in most countries is rapidly becoming more restrictive, as countries are trying to capture more people through employment and withheld tax arrangements. “Whilst an Employer of Record solution is a compliant way to allow agencies to place contractors as employees, we urgently encourage governments around the world to provide greater clarity about our sector.”
Employer of Record and Statement of Work solutions are helping to overcome obstacles, as are insurance solutions. Lizhen Cai, CEO of Jove Insurance, noted that ’the majority of policies in Europe exclude the USA and Canada, which is creating additional risks and limitations for firms looking to expand into these regions’ She also observed that insurance validation is helping RPOs to win business by onboarding contractors more quickly as well as reducing risk.
Aviation and engineering recruitment specialist VHR has won numerous TIARA awards for its compliance-enabled talent solutions in the Middle East. Paul Robinson, COO of VHR, emphasised the importance of having an in-house compliance team in the UAE because even minor mistakes could lead to the loss of a labour licence. Having this capability is a differentiator, so Robinson stressed the need for careful control over which aspects of compliance are delegated to external parties.
The role of tech and AI in global recruitment
One of the biggest risks and costs of expanding internationally is recruiting people and setting up offices in new territories with different employment laws, so how is tech minimising risk and cost? Stuart Johnson, Head of Sales at Mercury, explained how the Microsoft-based recruitment software is now enabling recruiters in the UK, US and APAC to scale more efficiently. He observed that, “whilst growing headcount has always been seen as an important milestone of success in the recruitment sector, leaders should be optimising AI & Automation to increase capacity to reduce the need to hire more people”.
“Whilst growing headcount has always been seen as an important milestone of success in the recruitment sector, leaders should be optimising AI & Automation to increase capability to reduce the need to hire more people”
Stuart highlighted the trend of embedding “AI-leaders” into operations to optimise best use of tech but cautioned that recruiters needed to mitigate the risks of AI, particularly in processing sensitive data and maintaining secure systems.
TALiNT Partners Global Growth Lunch & Learn offered a glimpse into the future of global recruitment, where the continuing rise of flexible workforce’s advancements in AI, and the growing importance of compliance solutions present both obstacles and avenues for growth. We believe that embracing technological innovation, strategic compliance management across regions, and tapping into under-utilised talent pools will be paramount in remaining competitive. Ultimately, those willing to rethink traditional recruitment models and capitalise on emerging global trends will be best positioned to thrive in the evolving market.
TALiNT Partners helps its network of leaders in staffing and talent solutions to make better decisions about their solutions, business strategies and careers with a year round programme of peer and expert learning events, tailored advice, and support from our leadership team.
To find out more about membership and how to join the industry’s premier network, visit TALiNT Partners Membership – TALiNT Partners – Connecting the talent ecosystem or contact alex@talintpartners.com
