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Back in 2016, only 16 percent of Norwegian companies responded that filling vacant positions was a challenge for them due to a lack of appropriate employee skills.
This percentage has been increasing since then has risen sharply and peaked last year when 74 percent of companies responded the same way. This is demonstrated by Manpowergroup's annual competence survey.
This percentage has now dropped slightly to 69%.
A dramatic situation
– This is a dramatic situation for companies that cannot find the people they are looking for. This could result in projects being halted or production being reduced, says Maalfrid Brath, CEO of ManpowerGroup In Norway.
– Persistent skills shortages labor force will be of critical importance for Norwegian companies and the Norwegian economy, he adds.
IT and engineering skills are at the top of the list of in-demand skills, that companies have difficulty obtaining.
– Yes, the situation has improved slightly. This is probably due to the fact that in some industries, such as construction, we are currently experiencing quite difficult times, while other sectors are still doing very well. Anyway, seven out of ten is a lot high score from historical point of view.
At the same time, global research shows that companies in many other countries are struggling even more than Norwegians in acquiring the necessary skills. In Japan 85 proc. he replies that he has a problem with it. Germany, France, the UK, India and Canada all have rates of 80 percent or more, while in Sweden it refers to 77 percent.
Two thirds of companies have difficulty finding employees
The average for all countries is 75%. – Finland is at the bottom with 59%.
- For many years Norwegian companies had relatively few challenges in acquiring expertise compared to companies in other countries, but the gap was becoming smaller. It's probably mainly about the Norwegian market working has also become more international, says Brath.
Flexibility may be the key
ManpowerGroup is the largest Norwegian company dealing with employee recruitment, which is why it cooperates with many companies that cannot find employees with appropriate qualifications.
– I think the most important one thingWhat companies can do is become more agile. Because employees now have much higher expectations regarding flexibility in their position than before the pandemic. They want more freedom with regard to both workplacesas well as working hours and they expect the employer to make it easier for them, says Brath.
– However, it is perhaps equally important to think outside the box about where you are recruiting from and pay more attention to the potential of candidates when recruiting them, rather than thinking that you will find specialist skills there. My advice is to recruit based more on potential than experience. This requires more resources.
Source: Dagens Næringsliv
