Professional Documents
Culture Documents
WRITTEN BY
Contents
Introduction 3
Challenges 4
01. Big companies typically offer higher pay and better benefits
02. Difficulty finding workers for old economy jobs
03. Limited HR resources
04. Overarching labour force shortages
05. Retaining seasoned workers
Conclusion 15
HOW MEDIUM-SIZED COMPANIES CAN WIN THE BATTLE FOR TALENT | Report 2
INTRODUCTION ADDRESSING TALENT CHALLENGES CONCLUSION
Introduction
Medium-sized companies
occupy a unique place
in many economies.
In addition to the sheer number of Medium-sized companies (the definition This reportwritten by The Economist
people they employbetween 15% varies by country) also have some Intelligence Unit and commissioned
and 25% of all those holding jobs unique challenges. Those that are in by American Express Global Business
in many Western countries1,2,3,4,5 the fastest-growing verticals usually Travelexamines the hiring obstacles
medium-sized companies often face competition from their larger faced by medium-sized companies in
operate in niche markets and grow peers, whether in the marketplace or five of the worlds biggest economies:
more quickly than companies in other in the quest for top talent. In particular, Australia, Canada, France, the UK and
parts of the economy. They also act as a medium-sized company can often US; it also looks at the strategies that
the backbone for bigger businesses, find itself in a hiring bidding war companies are employing to overcome
which depend on their unique with a larger company for the same those obstacles. The report is based on
capabilities and specialised skills. personor for a person the larger analyses of these countries job markets,
company already employs. If the employment trends, populations and
medium-sized company doesnt win regulations, as well as on interviews
the bidding war, the disappointment is with executives of medium-sized
magnified. Medium-sized companies companies and industry experts.
relatively small staff sizes make each
hire that much more important.
HOW MEDIUM-SIZED COMPANIES CAN WIN THE BATTLE FOR TALENT | Report 3
01
CHALLENGE
Big companies typically
offer higher pay and
better benefits
HOW MEDIUM-SIZED COMPANIES CAN WIN THE BATTLE FOR TALENT | Report 4
INTRODUCTION ADDRESSING TALENT CHALLENGES CONCLUSION
01
Smaller companies should play to
their strengths: flexibility, speed and
SOLUTION
Compete on flexibility,
access and responsibility
HOW MEDIUM-SIZED COMPANIES CAN WIN THE BATTLE FOR TALENT | Report 5
02 CHALLENGE
Difficulty finding workers
for old economy jobs
HOW MEDIUM-SIZED COMPANIES CAN WIN THE BATTLE FOR TALENT | Report 6
INTRODUCTION ADDRESSING TALENT CHALLENGES CONCLUSION
02
SOLUTION
Take advantage of
internships, vocational
schools and government
programmes
CTEs LiftOne division operates in To this end, parent company CTE, which college at night, says Mr Ryan. The
the field of materials handling is based in Charlotte, North Carolina, construction division of CTECarolina
leasing and servicing forklifts in is working with local high schools to CAThas had this programme in place
the southeastern United States. encourage students to attend vocational for three years and has hired more
Managers there know all about school at nearby Piedmont Community than 20 students. On the materials
recruitment challenges. Although College. That college now offers courses handling side of the business, LiftOne
LiftOnes equipment is increasingly in advanced hydraulics, allowing students hopes to use a similar model and
digitalforklifts today often have to work on equipment provided by replicate Carolina CATs success.
autonomous features and some dont LiftOnes suppliers. In theory, a student
even require a human operatorthe can walk out of Piedmont with a degree In 2005, when Mr Ryan first joined
business is still widely perceived as and walk into a job at LiftOne. Someone LiftOne, the firm had 107 people; 12
old economy, says Bill Ryan, an with an associates degree, whos got years later, it has grown to more than six
industry adviser who was formerly a good work ethic, a positive attitude times that size through acquisitions.
LiftOnes president (he left his full- and an ability to think on their feet, can
time role in March 2017, and now has make $50,000 a year pretty easily as In some parts of the US, state and local
his own consulting firm). Businesses a technician in the materials handling governments are entering into innovative
like LiftOne and its sister company industry, says Mr Ryan, relaying the pitch partnerships and programmes to help
Carolina CAT, which sells construction the company uses. The top-paid guys employers find workers with the skills
equipment, dont have the drawing are in the $80 to $90 thousand range. they need, including workers who dont
power to sit back and wait for good start with college degrees. An example is
applicants to come along, Mr Ryan CTE also sponsors vocational school Skillful, a partnership between Colorado,
says. Instead, they must proactively students whom it sees as high-potential LinkedIn and the Markle Foundation that
go out and find the workers they need. future employees. As part of a tuition is intended to take those with no degree
reimbursement programme, the students and train them so they can succeed in
work in departments like shipping the fields of information technology,
during the day and attend community advanced manufacturing and healthcare.
HOW MEDIUM-SIZED COMPANIES CAN WIN THE BATTLE FOR TALENT | Report 7
03 CHALLENGE
Limited HR resources
HOW MEDIUM-SIZED COMPANIES CAN WIN THE BATTLE FOR TALENT | Report 8
INTRODUCTION ADDRESSING TALENT CHALLENGES CONCLUSION
03
While every size company relies on
word of mouth to some extent, it is
SOLUTION
Word-of-mouth
and flexible hiring
HOW MEDIUM-SIZED COMPANIES CAN WIN THE BATTLE FOR TALENT | Report 9
04 CHALLENGE
Overarching labour
force shortages
HOW MEDIUM-SIZED COMPANIES CAN WIN THE BATTLE FOR TALENT | Report 10
INTRODUCTION ADDRESSING TALENT CHALLENGES CONCLUSION
04
SOLUTION
Tapping global pools
of labour and breaking
old hiring habits
One way for developed economies However, it can be tricky for smaller European languages so well. He adds
to address their labour and skills companies to capitalise on immigrant that the performance of non-natives is
shortages is to increase their reliance talentthe paperwork is quite a bit to typically comparable to that of natives
on imported talent. All countries manage. If you only have one or two once any language barrier is removed.
researched for this report are high HR people, its pretty taxing, says The
on a list of places that nationals of Conference Boards Mr Levanon. As for Canada, companies there can now
other countries, when asked, say bring in more low-skilled workers from
they would migrate to for work.8 That said, governments in the countries abroad thanks to an expansion of the
Talent is kind of borderless, says covered in this report are all taking countrys decades-old temporary foreign
brand expert Mr DiMassimo, whose various steps to help local companies worker programme. Skills mismatch
company has secured H-1B visas compete. Frances competencies and in Canada is a pretty big problem, says
for New Zealanders, Singaporeans, talent residencies visa, for example, is Dan Kelly, president of the Canadian
Australians and Koreans. given to university graduates and others Federation of Independent Businesses.
with special skills (including seasoned He explains that, while Canada has a
executives); it allows them to work in lot of college graduates, the country
France for three years. Cedefops Mr also has a big need for construction
Pouliakas says the EU is also taking workers, farmhands and hotel workers.
steps to ensure that EU employers Canadas immigration system, which Mr
understand the level of comparability in Kelly acknowledges has its challenges,
degrees earned outside the EU. The aim has been a pressure release valve for
is to enable the employers themselves some of these labour gaps, he says.
including small- and medium-sized
enterprisesto understand the skill levels Kastelen Sausage & Fine Meats, a
of different immigrants. Its a way of butchery in Alberta, is one Canadian
superseding the most important barrier, company that has taken advantage of the
Mr Pouliakas says, which is that these temporary foreign worker programme.
non-natives dont necessarily speak Kastelen operates in a rural area about
HOW MEDIUM-SIZED COMPANIES CAN WIN THE BATTLE FOR TALENT | Report 11
LiftOne has found other
ways to expand its pool of
prospective workers. One
is by seeking to increase
the number of women at
LiftOne, which operates in a
sector that has traditionally
been male-dominated.
20 miles east of Edmonton with a with operations in the countrys remote We realised we had a stereotype in
thinly available workforcepeople areas were bringing in people from how we were hiring, Mr Ryan says. We
living there often prefer working in the other parts of the country on a fly- said, lets see if we can change that.
nearby oil fields. That has compelled in, fly-out basis, says Mr Neville of While some female employees of LiftOne
Kastelen to turn to the foreign worker Australias Department of Employment. still refer to it as an old boys club, Mr
programme, which has allowed the Large mining companies did this Ryan says, the mere presence of those
company (with some 20 employees) to the most, but some medium-sized women is changing the perception.
bring in workers from the Philippines, companiesmainly service providers
Ukraine and elsewhere. Rose Braun, to the minerswere involved as well. LiftOne is also making an effort to
Kastelens office manager, acknowledges Although the practice has declined as recruit job candidates from among
that the foreign worker programme Australias energy market has cooled, its North and South Carolinas sizeable
has its drawbacksincluding the many a strategy that companies experiencing minority populations. In the past,
months it can take for the government talent shortages can still employ. minorities werent a big part of
to determine that a foreign worker is LiftOnes employee base. Its all
indeed needed and for the foreigner Mr Ryan, the adviser in the materials about increasing the supply of talent
to receive a work permitbut says it handling industry, says immigrants we have to draw on, Mr Ryan says.
has been a good source of experienced havent been a source of talent for the
butchers and other workers for Kastelen. companies in his field, which tend to hire Outside vendors have also been a
locally. But LiftOne has found other ways popular way to address internal labour
The attraction of non-local staff to expand its pool of prospective workers. shortages. Across industry sectors,
is not an exercise confined to luring One is by seeking to increase the number many middle-sized companies employ
talent from abroad. It can refer to of women at LiftOne, which operates in a vendors for technology support, help with
telecommuters or those who maintain sector that has traditionally been male- tax accounting and travel management.
home bases and personal lives at a dominated. To this end, LiftOne is tapping Rather than hire new talent to bring this
significant distance from their worksite. into a Women in the Industry initiative work in-house, it may prove sensible to
For example, at the height of Australias spearheaded by the Material Handling continue leveraging outside resources.
natural resources boom, companies Equipment Distributors Association.
HOW MEDIUM-SIZED COMPANIES CAN WIN THE BATTLE FOR TALENT | Report 12
05 CHALLENGE
Retaining
seasoned workers
HOW MEDIUM-SIZED COMPANIES CAN WIN THE BATTLE FOR TALENT | Report 13
INTRODUCTION ADDRESSING TALENT CHALLENGES CONCLUSION
05
Many baby boomers, notably in the
US, plan to delay retirement and
SOLUTION
Offer them new roles,
including as mentors
HOW MEDIUM-SIZED COMPANIES CAN WIN THE BATTLE FOR TALENT | Report 14
INTRODUCTION ADDRESSING TALENT CHALLENGES CONCLUSION
Conclusion
Talent is a puzzle every
medium-sized company
canand mustsolve
Anyone who has ever been responsible The question is how medium-sized
The Economist Intelligence Unit
for recruiting knows there is nothing companies should manage recruitment
would like to thank those who
more satisfying than making a great given the varied challenges that
offered their time on this project,
new hireand nothing worse than many of them face. The answer is to including those who participated
making a bad one. The consequences take advantage of their strengths, in one-on-one interviews:
of hiring decisions are magnified including their inherent flexibility and
at medium-sized companies, since the access they offer to executives; Mark DiMassimo
each new employee plays a relatively keep their ears to the ground for DiMassimo Goldstein
bigger role in the companys success. local talent; and be resourceful about Imran Hakim
developing new talent pools. Treating Hakim Group
recruitment as a priority is the key.
Dan Kelly
Canadian Federation of
Independent Businesses
You have to be at least as aggressive with your
Gad Levanon
sources of talent as with developing your business... The Conference Board
Your success is dependent on it. Ivan Neville
Australias Department of Employment
Mark DiMassimo
Owner, DiMassimo Goldstein Konstantinos Pouliakas
European Centre for the Development
of Vocational Training
Bill Ryan
Adviser to LiftOne
Rose Braun
An administrator at Kastelen
Sausage & Fine Meats
HOW MEDIUM-SIZED COMPANIES CAN WIN THE BATTLE FOR TALENT | Report 15
Sources
1-5. Australian Bureau of Statistics, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, National Institute of Statistics and
Economic Studies (INSEE), Department for Business, Innovation & Skills, Business Dynamics Statistics, US Census Bureau
6. http://money.cnn.com/2017/05/19/technology/ibm-work-at-home/
7. http://www.autonews.com/article/20160819/OEM01/160819828/automakers-suppliers-struggle-to-find-and-keep-talent
8. https://www.bcgperspectives.com/content/articles/human_resources_leadership_decoding_global_talent/?chapter=3#chapter3
9. https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/publication/growing-older-america-health-and-retirement-study/chapter-2-work-and-retirement
10. https://www.transamericacenter.org/docs/default-source/resources/center-research/tcrs2014_sr_baby_-boomers_and_employers.pdf
American Express Global Business Travel (GBT) is a joint venture that is not wholly owned by American Express
Company or any of its subsidiaries (American Express). American Express Global Business Travel, American
Express, and the American Express logo are trademarks of American Express, and are used under limited license.