The Great Re-Evaluation: Building skills in post-pandemic Canada

As we move away from the immediate threat of the COVID pandemic, employers are faced with yet another crisis – a global skills shortage. Overnight digitization and the advent of remote work has culminated in a candidate-led market, one in which employers have to work doubly hard to secure much-needed talent.

In Canada, the Great Re-Evaluation is in full force, with more and more employees looking to jump ship to greener pastures. As such, HR leaders need to reassess and re-evaluate how and where they’re looking for these skills. A recent report from Indeed found that 79% of businesses said it’s been difficult to find workers in the last one to two months. What’s more, 80% of employers made changes to their hiring practices in order to attract talent in the current market.

In the face of such data, it’s clear that employers need to step up their retention tactics – beginning with training and development. Upskilling has long been linked to low turnover. A recent report from McKinsey and Company found that companies which chose to reskill their workforce pre-COVID were better able to address the skills gap created by the pandemic – and ultimately found it easier to thrive through the disruption.