Skilled trades professionals are in high demand, and TA leaders are getting creative to gain greater access to them. Demographic currents indicate that talent supply crunch will not end soon. In the U.S., for example, roughly five skilled trades workers retire for every two that enter the workforce. Iva Stock, Director of Operations for EMEA RPO for KellyOCG, says there are effective strategies to help navigate the competitive landscape.
“Improving access to workers starts really with widening the talent pool,” she says. Since organizations compete for an already limited supply of talent, she recommends taking a skills-based approach to recruiting and hiring. “Talent acquisition teams should work with the business to separate the qualifications that are essential from day one. It can be particularly helpful for safety-critical roles because skills can be developed through training. This allows employers to consider people with some transferable technical experience for practical ability and, of course, potential to learn.”
TA teams should also consider how to present opportunities to ensure they are attractive and relevant to workers. Stock advises performing an analysis of job adverts and descriptions to make sure they reflect the reality of the roles. Including information around flexibility and development programs will make them more appealing to a wider network.
Tapping into untraditional talent pools can also broaden the search for skilled trades professionals. Stock notes that communication is changing as employers reach out to a broader base of talent. “Use more inclusive communication to ensure roles are relatable to everyone who can do them, not just those with the traditional profiles of the past,” Stock advises.
“In a current project, we’ve intentionally broadened our talent pipelines rather than just using the same channels.” This approach is helping to fill roles faster, as well as contribute to a stronger workforce.
Data and analytics can provide key insight into talent needs, enabling a proactive approach to hiring. “Data allows us to understand future demands, local talent availability, expected attrition, and where specific skills may become difficult to find,” Stock explains. In fact, she has been using data to outline the talent needs for an organization so TA leaders can understand what’s ahead for the next 12 and 24 months.
Armed with reliable and predictive intelligence, the business can build a sustainable talent pipeline for the future. The organization, driven by her TA team, also works with schools, technical colleges, apprenticeship providers, and local communities to reach untapped talent. “We need to maintain relationships with the candidates at different stages of readiness, rather than just treating a pipeline as a database for applicants,” she says. These strategies create a long-term pipeline long before a vacancy opens.
For hard-to-fill roles, some businesses are building from within. Stock provides the example of an organization that launched a field service technician development program. It combines hands-on experience with structured training and mentoring components. “We are basically preparing future technicians to diagnose and repair engines by getting them ready for more experienced roles in the future,” she says.
Whether revisiting job definitions, expanding sourcing to new channels, repositioning communications for a broader audience, utilizing predictive data, or hiring from within, there are many options to expand the potential talent supply. With the right partnership and support, these strategies are within reach, and as organizations are learning, they are now core to TA success.
