The data of this year’s survey on developments in the human resources area, recently published by MISCO, highlighted the fact that one of the major obstacles to growth that businesses are facing is the lack of suitable human resources.
The difficulties being faced in the area of recruiting led to 80 per cent of respondents to state that the main strategic objective of their HR function is staff retention. The main reasons for recruitment difficulties were lack of experienced applicants, salary demands and no applications being received.
All these issues are related to each other. If an employer retains one’s staff, the issue of a lack of suitable resources becomes less acute and recruitment challenges become easier to address.
These are just a part of the results. However, they lead me to the topic which I will cover in this week’s contribution. Is the issue of staff retention and difficulties being faced by employers in recruitment, one of quality or one of quantity? It is certainly an issue of quantity because there are still not enough people around for the vacancies that employers claim to have.
On the other hand I feel that, even if as a country we had to resolve the quantity aspect, we would still be left with quality aspect of human resources, and one of the reasons for this predicament is that we are still not thinking strategically about our human resources.
How much of this work involves creativity and how much involves just processing?
I wonder how many private sector employers are also being guilty of employee hoarding, that is they keep staff on their books because they are afraid that if they ever come to need more people, they may not find them. As such, they would have unproductive staff, which they are afraid to do without, in case they get to need them again – hence the term employee hoarding.
I also believe that another aspect we need to address is whether the human resources function truly forms an integral part of the business strategy of the organisation. This would require employers to take a strategic view of human resources and seek to maximise the value added in the longer term. The question is very pertinent and valid, given that this was an issue raised by Isabelle Maquet from the European Commission, at event organised by the Malta Employers Association, ‘SME’s Opportunities and Challenges in Employment’.
She claimed that as a country we still have a great deal of work to do to maximise the productivity of our labour resource. We have near full employment, but this does not mean that our human resources are as productive as they should be.
In this context, again it is worth asking the question whether, in such tight labour market conditions, employers are adopting a strategy which enables them to reduce their reliance on human resources, through measures and investments that enhance productivity and move their workforce up the value chain. My understanding of the market is that some employers have embraced such a strategy, while several others have not. Again this is indicative of lack of strategic approach to human resources.
Another point to make is about the nature of the work being done in the so- called newer segments of the economy. How much of this work involves creativity and how much involves just processing, which requires little creative and critical thinking? Are we being just happy with the number of people in employment, without bothering too much about the quality of the work they do?
Malta is indeed in an enviable position. We have a strong economy. We do not have an unemployment problem. We have a legal framework that is conducive to attracting foreign investment. We are running a surplus in our public finances. Therefore we are under no pressure to seek short-term solutions to pressing problems.
On the other hand, such a positive situation should not be blinding us from seeking solutions to longer-term issues. Thinking strategically about our human resources is one such longer-term issue.