This edition’s front page carries a story with commentary from well known business commentator Robert Gottliebsen on the ever-worsening skills shortage and the growing threats it poses to Australian employers. He makes the observant point that, despite a general awareness of the issue amongst HR professionals, the majority of CEOs and the Federal Government have no idea about the extent of the problem
by Craig Donaldson
This edition’s front page carries a story with commentary from well-known business commentator Robert Gottliebsen. Gottliebsen is commenting on the ever-worsening skills shortage and the growing threats it poses to Australian employers and the economy.
He makes the observant point that, despite a general awareness of the issue among HR professionals, the majority of CEOs and the Federal Government have no idea about the extent of the problem.
As with the issue of the ageing population, HR is between a rock of what is seen as a long-term non-financial issue by many CEOs, and the hard place of executive concerns over shareholder demands for short-term results. The sad reality is that the Federal Government is doing too little, too late while many CEOs are unsympathetic to issues such as the growing skills shortage.
John Howard wants to be remembered for making a mark, but by the time he moves on, (short of a possible fall in tax revenue) how much will he really care about the skills shortage? Judging by the government’s past actions, they seem happy to largely pay lip service to the issue. Likewise, the average tenure of CEOs in today’s economy is three to five years. With the added pressure of shareholder demands, many CEOs will have moved on by the time the skills shortage really begins to bite.
Large recruitment firms and a good number of industries are already searching hard overseas for skilled workers, and this candidate shortage will sooner rather than later spread across the entire employment spectrum.
HR professionals are in a key position to take a leading role in the debate. As Gottliebsen points out, talent management and skills auditing will become core to the HR professional's role, and this will require a paradigm shift for many HR professionals. No longer will practitioners be able to cling to administrative duties, but the skills shortage and other demographic changes will force many HR practitioners to take a more strategic look at their work. And CEOs will hopefully gain a new appreciation of the fact that it is the quality of a workforce and its skills that generate profits.
