Digest of the SIA’s Staffing Trends in 2018 Report – Part I

You’re very busy handling the myriad responsibilities and initiatives involved in managing the workforce planning and execution for your organization. It’s no surprise that you have precious little time to spend on non-essential tasks like digging into industry reports and data to keep abreast of the latest trends, opportunities and threats facing the workforce management profession. That’s why the nextSource blog exists—to help digest this information and provide it to you in quick, easily understood synopses. If you didn’t have the time to peruse the Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA) February report, Staffing Trends in 2018, here’s the distilled info on each of the eight trends identified in this detailed report.

SIA lists the following eight factors as key trends impacting the industry now and for the duration of this year: The Global Economy, Technology/Automation, Skills Shortages, Legislation, Gig Economy, Public Perception, Procurement Sophistication and the Rise of Asia. Here’s the money quote for each of these trends boiled down to its essence by the SIA.

Global Economy | SIA points to the International Monetary Fund’s global GDP estimate for 2018 as a positive indicator of current economic strength. Pegged at 3.7% for this year, SIA suggests there is still a burst of growth to come from the Trump tax cut. Since staffing industry revenue growth is highly correlated to GDP, SIA suggests this is bullish for the industry in 2018. The report does however, hedge by listing potential macroeconomic disruptions such as natural disasters, cyberattacks, data fraud/theft and others.

Technology/Automation | A mixed bag, the impact of this trend on workforce management is dual faceted. Certainly, the replacement of traditional jobs by automation tech is expected to continue which changes the nature and volume of jobs and roles needed while also displacing entire career tracks. On the other hand, workforce/staffing industry operators will definitely benefit from the ongoing improvements in automation technologies applied to workforce management processes like VMS, ATS and others.

Skills Shortages | The fascinating irony of the skills shortage currently facing developed economies is the fact that, “at the moment when developed economies need extra headcount, the prevailing public and political zeitgeist is more focused on creating barriers to foreign workers than attracting them” according to SIA. Staffing organizations could be very well-positioned to grow if they are successful in developing solutions that perform well given this unique political dynamic.

Legislation | It’s not news that rapidly changing labor types and utilization continue to challenge the law’s ability to maintain regulatory order. Look for the increased level of legislation regarding labor law to continue unabated. Be ready with expert perspectives when each new ruling is handed down!

Visit the nextSource blog later this week for Part II of this article detailing the remaining four trends identified by the SIA as critical to the success of workforce management professionals in 2018.