A new report by
PwC is offering insight into the future of work and it seems employers should be bracing themselves for some serious change.
Research conducted by the global consulting firm indicates that 46 per cent of HR professionals believe that at least 20 per cent of their workforce will be made up of temporary workers by 2022.
While the figure may seem modest, it’s actually a sharp contrast to 2012, when Statistics NZ data showed that just 10 per cent of the workforce was made up of temporary workers.
Simon Hall, business manager of
Temp Market, acknowledges that the sudden uptake may come as a surprise to some but says it’s actually been on the horizon for some time.
“When we consider the subtle paradigm shifts that have been steadily occurring over time, it’s a logical – and appropriate – next step,” he says.
Auckland-based Hall says there two trends in particular are driving the push towards temporary workers.
Portfolio careers
“Technology has been steadily bridging the gap between work and home life, creating a sense of increased flexibility and autonomy. Now, this attitude is filtering through to careers on a wider level,” says Hall.
“Professionals will position themselves as freelancers, taking on temporary projects to add new skills to their repertoires and fill holes in their learning.”
Rather than being considered “job-hoppers”, Hall says these workers will actually be considered career-savvy.
“Each new project is a tightly-calculated next step towards a sharper, higher-performing future,” he explains.
Flexibility
“With this creeping invasion of work into private life, comes the consequent value shift towards work-life balance. Money is precious, but so is time – and in many cases, an employee with a multi-faceted life will struggle to fit his or her many increasing demands into a traditional 9-to-5 structure,” says Hall.
“The ability to be flexible with working days and times – inherent in taking temporary assignments – will be a rapidly-growing drawcard.”
As a result of the inevitable changes, Hall says businesses will have to develop highly-targeted recruitment strategies which follow a B2B approach.
“With candidates in the talent pool losing the mantle of ‘job seeker’ and replacing it with ‘contractor,’ to attract key talent to fill a gap in your team, you will need to position it as more of a mutually-beneficial partnership,” he advises.
“A potential employee’s ‘personal brand’ will have increased impetus when it comes to recruiting talent, and attempts to connect with potential future employees will need to follow a finely targeted approach, as candidates diversify and add new skills to their portfolios.”
Ultimately, Hall claims employers will have little choice but to embrace temporary workers.
“Rather than viewing your workforce as an office full of ‘career temps’, you would do better to think of yourself as a project manager, recruiting teams of highly-specialised individuals that allow you to react to industry changes and diversify as per your needs,” he says.
For more insights, download Temp Market’s free ebook 'Just in Time Staffing'.
Temp Market is a high tech job matching platform cutting out the middle man to bring employers and temporary workers together.
Skills tests, ratings from previous employers and video introductions help you choose your ideal candidate. We have checked and screened temps with admin, customer service and IT Programming skills available now, all for one low cost fee.
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