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Contingent Workforce

Diversity’s Measurable Impacts on the Contingent Workforce

Business LeadershipContingent WorkforceDirect SourcingDiversity and InclusionGeneral InsightsTalent by John Yuva on

Diversity programs continue to evolve, and enterprises must ensure their efforts span the total talent spectrum. Often, diversity initiatives are primarily focused on full-time, permanent employees. However, with contingent talent now comprising more than half of organizations’ entire workforce, diversity should permeate contingent workforce management (CWM) strategies.

In fact, recent Ardent Partners and Future of Work Exchange research indicates 62% of enterprises plan to infuse diversity initiatives into their CWM efforts as part of their workplace goals.

Diversity Is Critical to CWM Results

CWM and the Future of Work movement are aligned in their workforce direction. Extended workers represent a global talent pool where flexibility and a skills-based portfolio are at their core. Equally important, however, are the unique perspectives and outside viewpoints of contingent workers that cater to diverse thinking and enterprise representation.

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Is It Time to Reintroduce Ourselves to Total Talent Management?

Contingent WorkforceHRTalent by Christopher J. Dwyer on

For the past decade, the very concept of total talent management has been akin to the Bigfoot or Loch Ness Monster of the business arena: a mythical idea that has only seen slivers of reality across global organizations. Sure, we’ve seen dribbles of total talent programs in some enterprises, as well as specific elements of these initiatives (i.e., total talent acquisition, total talent intelligence, etc.) offered by some of the industry’s more progressive workforce management solutions.

However, on the whole, total talent management itself has still not yet experienced its true arrival as we all would have anticipated. Back in 2011, I wrote perhaps the industry’s first full research study on total talent management, which found that there was extreme desire for such a program; the caveat, however, was that the tools weren’t quite there yet…and neither were the foundational elements required to make such a program successful.

So, here were are in 2023, with a toxic workplace environment (due to many, many workplace culture issues), a volatile labor market, and a Great Resettling that represents a continued revolution of talent. There may or may not be a recession swirling around us like a dooming specter. And, above all else, enterprises realize that they require the right talent at the right time at the right cost to get work done in an efficient and optimal way.

Dare I say that we should reintroduce ourselves to the idea of total talent management? Should we truly flip this concept from theory into reality? Here a few reasons why:

  • The technology is finally there to support TTM. A decade ago, the phrase “extended workforce” didn’t exist…nor did the proper technology to make total talent management a reality. Contingent workforce management (CWM) was just beginning its ascent to true strategic imperative, while less than a quarter of the total workforce was considered “non-employee.” Today, the story has evolved: extended workforce systems are innovative offshoots of Vendor Management System (VMS) platforms that can easily integrate with the core human capital systems (ATS, HRIS, etc.) for true visibility, management, and oversight of both contingent and FTE labor. Point-of-entry automation for new requisitions and talent requests can access various forms of talent, including the ever-important talent communities developed by direct sourcing solutions. And, most importantly, today’s workforce management technology can easily help businesses understand their total workforce, an attribute which allows them to pinpoint the best-aligned talent (be it contingent or an FTE already on staff) for a given project or role.
  • Functional collaboration today is a must-have capability. Unlike in years past, it is much more common for businesses to experience core cross-functional coordination; procurement and finance tackle their problems together, for instance, for the sake of the bottom-line. HR, talent acquisition, and procurement have all experienced challenges and pressures over the past two-and-a-half years, each unit emerging from the acute pandemic phase stronger than ever before. As such, the idea of collaborative strategies is much easier to maintain in today’s business environment: in the quest for survival during those scary days of 2020, enterprise functions learned that they needed each other to thrive. And, today, these three distinct groups now understand that, in a world where talent is an incredible competitive differentiator, they must work together to bridge the gaps between extended workforce management and traditional hiring. By combining efficiencies and blending strengths, the triumvirate of HR, procurement, and talent acquisition can form a formidable backbone of total talent management.
  • Aspects such as purpose, flexibility, and empathy boost the importance of the candidate experience, with the notion of “engagement” playing a critical role in total talent acquisition. No longer does a great hourly rate set the tone for freelancers, contractors, and other types of non-employee talent when choosing their next destination. Workplace culture (and leadership style) are more crucial now than ever for hiring managers to hook new talent; as such, the idea behind total talent acquisition (a key phase within TTM that involves a centralized, standardized set of guidelines and processes for engaging and sourcing all types of talent) becomes one of engagement, as well. True total talent management programs harness the power of employee engagement and candidate experience tools and tactics to ensure a steady approach towards talent acquisition for both contingent and FTE talent populations.
  • The need for business agility, combined with the volatility of the labor market, translates into the perfect gateway for total talent management. Simply put: total talent management is needed today, now more than ever. Businesses must execute lightning-fast talent decisions to thrive in an uncertain economy; the “total talent intelligence” enabled by total talent management programs and associated platforms allow hiring managers and other leaders to understand 1) the current makeup of talent across the organization, 2) the best-fit resources (whether it’s someone in house, a current contractor, etc.) for a new project or role, and 3) provide a dynamic entryway into a truly agile workforce.

Total talent management has been an oft-maligned strategy that has bordered on the hypothetical for over a decade. However, the platforms available today and the transformation of work and talent, combined with the need for such a program, positions total talent management as an innovative strategy for the months and years ahead.

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The Talent Supply Chain Is Evolving…It’s Time to Rethink How We Approach It

Contingent WorkforceDirect SourcingEventsTalentTalent Acquisition by Christopher J. Dwyer on

Earlier this month, I had the pleasure of joining Prosperix‘s CEO, Sunil Bagai, and Defiant Solutions’ Bryan Pena for a spirited discussion on the evolution of the talent supply chain. Everything You Know About The Talent Supply Chain Is Wrong featured some new Ardent Partners and Future of Work Exchange research, as well as a high-energy roundtable chat focused on how businesses can balance the power of today’s progressive labor market with the proper strategies for thriving in the months ahead.

If you missed the live event, we have you covered. Check out an on-demand edition below.

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The Top Talent Challenges of 2023 (So Far)

Business LeadershipContingent WorkforceDirect SourcingTalentTalent Acquisition by Christopher J. Dwyer on

The business arena is shrouded in disruption and uncertainty, given the volatility of the labor market, supply chain risks, and economic challenges that are plaguing a variety of industries across the globe. With talent as the modern enterprise’s top competitive differentiator, it is no wonder that these external factors are placing pressure on talent-specific operations within the average organization, particularly workforce oversight, extended and contingent workforce management, skills analysis, talent engagement, talent acquisition, services procurement, etc.

In another exclusive Future of Work Exchange infographic, we highlight some brand new Ardent Partners research and unveil the top talent-oriented challenges for businesses (thus far) in 2023.

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The Continued Rise of the Extended Workforce

Contingent WorkforceTalentTalent Acquisition by Christopher J. Dwyer on

During The Great Recession of 2008-2009*, businesses faced a harsh reality: do more with less…or else face a reckoning. Tens of thousands of enterprises were forced to lay off swaths of their staff in the wake of rough financial times, with so many others undertaking additional cost-cutting measures beyond slashing their total headcount.

Many incredibly talented professionals found themselves out of a job, and many once-thriving organizations found themselves without the same level of expertise they once maintained. However, unlike recessions of past, an interesting event occurred: a bounce-happened quick enough that those very businesses required talent to meet a rising demand for their products and services. And, those professionals who were cut from their positions became open to flexible work and new working arrangements.

Enter the “perfect storm” that signaled a revolution.

In the months preceding The Great Recession, the average penetration rate of contingent labor hovered around 10%-to-12%. In the wake of those awful economic times, that penetration rate soared to nearly 17%. This meant that 17% of the average company’s total workforce was comprised of temporary workers, independent contractors, freelancers, and professional services-based labor.

In 2010, that number hit 20%. In 2011, it was nearly 23%. And so on, as demonstrated below:

The meteoric rise of the contingent workforce, what we now refer to as the “extended workforce” to encompass the agility, flexibility, and extended talent sources inherent in non-employee talent, has reached an apex of sorts. Today, in 2023, Ardent Partners and Future of Work Exchange research finds that 49% of the average company’s total workforce is comprised of external, extended talent.

Years ago, many of us (this author included) believed that there would be a day when half of the total workforce would be considered contingent or extended. And now, in February 2023, that day is here. The extended workforce has traversed beyond its origins as a mere augmentative staffing attribute and has become a powerful entity that has transformed the way businesses think about how they get work done. Back in 2008 and 2009, businesses flipped the notions of the contingent workforce on its head; what emerged from that period of time was the continued rise of this malleable workforce that has driven so much value to organizations across the world.

Today, the extended workforce is a foundational element of the business arena. And the reasons are plentiful, including:

  • The rules of hiring have changed. Years ago, staffing suppliers represented the vast bulk of contingent hiring. Today, that is no longer the case. In the age of omni-channel talent acquisition, enterprises are enabled with a variety of candidate sources that can be converged to drive real-time skills alignment, on-demand hiring, and enhanced visibility into deeper attributes of candidates. While traditional staffing suppliers are still a critical piece of the contingent workforce, the “omni-channel experience” represents a new era in which enterprises can expand their talent searches through the advent of innovation, direct sourcing automation, new candidate channels, and next-generation and AI-fueled technology.
  • “Optimization” translates into agile talent strategies. Business agility is not a new concept, and certainly wasn’t considered so when the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted, well, pretty much everything. In the wake of “doing more with less” yet again, as well as the fallout from having to continually realign hiring strategies with the actual, real-time demands for products and services, businesses found that workforce optimization provided a linear and effective pathway towards true enterprise agility. This entailed optimizing the mix of internal and external talent in such a way that the greater organization benefits from the best-aligned skillsets and expertise being leveraged to get work done efficiently and productively by maximizing the total talent pool.
  • The skills-based organization requires a robust connection to the extended workforce. We’ve talked about the skills-based organization here at the Exchange for quite some time (even earlier this month). The foundational elements of the skills-based organization revolve around the concepts of rethinking the parallels between talent and work, which, essentially represents a skills-oriented focus in which expertise is the nexus of hiring rather than costs, budgets, etc. The extended workforce plays a vital role in SBO-driven concepts, particularly when thinking about the depth of skills, expertise, and relevant experience across all open channels of talent, be it talent marketplaces, talent pools, talent communities, freelancer networks, traditional employees, etc.
  • Hybrid workplaces have influenced hiring strategies. When the pandemic hit, businesses across the world were forced to shift into fully-remote or hybrid-led workplace models. Along with the natural acceleration of remote work as a pandemic by-product came a shift in how enterprises structured hiring strategies. Looking beyond the backyard allowed organizations to think more expansively, finding workers and candidates from across the world with the skillsets they desired. The extended workforce and remote work often go hand-in-hand, and this new thinking towards hiring is a major reason why it continues to grow and continues have such an incredible impact.

The ultimate growth and value of the extended workforce shows no signs of slowing as its nears a 15-year pace of increasing utilization. In today’s Future of Work-driven business climate, the extended workforce is a powerful mainstay that contributes to and facilitates real enterprise agility.

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The Future of Work is Now: Top Trends for 2023 (New Research!)

Business LeadershipContingent WorkforceGeneral InsightsTalent by Christopher J. Dwyer on

2023 promises to be a year unlike any other. With rampant inflation, economic uncertainty, and a volatile labor market, enterprises must balance agility, flexibility, and dynamic strategies to thrive in these uncertain times. The year ahead will surely challenge enterprises, with the specter of an economic downturn lingering overhead as well as continued uncertainty regarding the volatility of the labor market. However, as businesses have done over the past three years, they will persevere, they will thrive, and, most critically, they will innovate.

In the spirit of looking ahead, Ardent Partners and the Future of Work Exchange developed a brand new research study: The Future of Work Is Now: Top Trends for 2023. Sponsored by Guidant Global, this exciting new research study highlights the key trends of today’s dynamic world of work and their implications on business operations in the year ahead. Click here to download the new report.

We identified seven key trends that will shape the way businesses find, engage, and source talent, manage their extended workforce, and optimize they ways they get work done. Download the new research study today!

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Employee Engagement Still Lacks Execution

Business LeadershipContingent WorkforceGeneral InsightsHRTechnology and Innovation by John Yuva on

Today’s enterprises can be characterized as fast-paced, ever-evolving to effectively respond to a more dynamic marketplace. Within the hustle and bustle lies a critical workforce need that is often overlooked: employee engagement. The concept can be confused with simply offering employees certain monthly perks identified from a quick survey. However, it goes much deeper than that and reaches beyond permanent, full-time employees to those in the extended workforce, as well.

A well-rounded definition of employee engagement comes from Engage For Success: “Employee engagement is a workplace approach resulting in the right conditions for all members of an organization to give of their best each day, committed to their organization’s goals and values, motivated to contribute to organizational success, with an enhanced sense of their own well-being.”

Powerful, Yet Underutilized

It is that commitment toward oneself and the enterprise that makes employee engagement such a powerful workforce approach. Yet, as a Gallup survey indicates, only 36% of U.S. employees are engaged in their work and workplace. The number is even lower on a global scale, with only 20% of employees engaged at work.

However, for those enterprises with a fully entrenched employee engagement system, the results speak for themselves. According to Gallup, those leading organizations are experiencing the following benefits:

  • An increase of 18% in productivity (sales)
  • An increase of 23% in profitability
  • A decline of 40% in quality issues (defects)

Achieving these results requires engagement with every worker. With nearly half (nearly 48%) of today’s enterprises comprised of contingent workers (per Ardent Partners and Future of Work Exchange research), employee engagement must include this critical workforce segment. When faced with the possibility of losing extended talent following a project or other initiative, employee engagement could be the competitive differentiator to retain them.

Engagement Strategies

Remote and hybrid work models can pose some challenges to employee engagement strategies. However, Gallop says “…highly skilled managers who set clear expectations, are in touch with each person through meaningful weekly conversations and have high accountability” will be necessary to execute employee engagement in a remote/hybrid work model.

A hybrid model is the most conducive to employee engagement because “…it can provide flexibility that considers several factors simultaneously — the individual’s life situation and strengths, the needs of the team they work on, health concerns, and the organization’s culture and business objectives,” Gallop says.

The following are various employee engagement strategies that can lead to a more motivated and productive workforce.

  • Invest in the candidate/employee experience. From the moment an enterprise engages with a candidate through that individual’s employment with the organization, the candidate/employee experience should be part of that journey. Communication and illustration of the company’s core values, for example, should be front and center to provide a sense of belonging and set the tone of the culture. Those values are then reinforced by managers and team leaders to create an open and positive work environment.
  • Integrate technology into the employee engagement process. Digital solutions permeate the workforce landscape. Apps to streamline the onboarding of contingent workers, collaboration tools for in-person and remote teams, and others all play a role in employee engagement. Research by Ardent Partners and the Future of Work Exchange says that 73% of businesses plan to utilize AI to measure and track and enhance employee engagement and the candidate experience. According to HR Cloud, “With the use of AI and collaboration tools, employees can become highly engaged since these technologies simplify tasks. Technology today allows efficiency, increases flexibility, and allows employees to work within the allocated time.”
  • Conduct regular workplace assessments. As the enterprise workforce evolves, it’s essential to measure the pulse of the workplace through assessments. Gauge overall feelings about workplace culture, leadership effectiveness, and work/life balance to name a few. Nearly 80% of businesses plan to conduct formal workplace culture assessments by the end of 2023, according to research from Ardent Partners and the Future of Work Exchange. Results will serve as a foundation for any changes to employee engagement initiatives.
  • Communicate, communicate, communicate. Motivate employees by encouraging them to share their thoughts, feelings, and ideas. One-on-one meetings with managers each week creates an emotional connection to the organization. Contingent workers must also be part of these weekly one-on-ones. Gaining their input can lead to productivity insights and improvements, as well as enhance their connection with their team members and colleagues.
  • Promote transparency with the contingent workforce. When it comes to the inner workings of the enterprise, the extended workforce should be part of those discussions. Whether they’re company meetings, employee retreats, or other communication and bonding activities, transparency with contingent workers can lead to greater trust, loyalty, and commitment. The more extended workers know about the organization and what goes on behind the scenes, the more they identify with its objectives and successes.

In his updated Gallup article, Jim Harter, Ph.D., chief scientist for Gallup, succinctly lays out the importance of an engaging workplace coupled with great managers — regardless of the economic climate. “Amid changes in workplaces and the economy, building an engaging workplace with great managers remains centrally important. During tough times, it predicts the resiliency of the workforce,” Harter says. “During recovery times, with lower unemployment, it predicts the retention of star employees. During all times, engaging workplaces with great managers build an organizational reputation and employment brand.”

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Artificial Intelligence Streamlines Contingent Workforce Management Decision-making

Business LeadershipContingent WorkforceGeneral InsightsTechnology and Innovation by John Yuva on

In today’s labor and economic climate, enterprises cannot afford to make poor hiring decisions. And with 47.5% of an organization’s workforce comprised of contingent workers, per Ardent Partners and Future of Work Exchange research, an extended worker hire is just as critical operationally as a permanent employee. The ramifications of a hiring mistake — whether it’s an extended or permanent role — can cost businesses 30 percent of the employee’s first-year earnings, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. However, artificial intelligence is now shaping the future of contingent workforce management (CWM) to help avoid those employment missteps.

CWM Optimization Through Artificial Intelligence

Through artificial intelligence, enterprises can harness the value of structured and unstructured data to streamline contingent workforce management decision-making. AI also opens the door to new user experiences to better attract, acquire, and retain top-performing talent and improve operational execution — all leading to cost savings. Using prescriptive analytics for CWM optimization is an evolving but critical piece of AI strategy. While artificial intelligence has existed for a decade or more, the wider scope of its capabilities is only now being utilized.

Subsets of AI, such as machine learning (ML), predictive analytics, and natural language processing, coupled with complementary technologies like augmented reality and the metaverse are game changers for contingent workforce management optimization.

Putting Artificial Intelligence to Work

Enterprises and HR executives who are not at least exploring the possibilities of AI’s impact on CWM will find themselves at a competitive disadvantage when sourcing talent and executing extended workforce strategies. Ardent Partners and Future of Work Exchange research cites that 80% of businesses expect AI to transform CWM in the year ahead. These are several ways that AI and associated technologies are getting the job done.

  • Enhance the candidate matching process. Enterprises are under pressure to not only attract and acquire the right candidates but do so in a short time-to-hire time-frame. The talent need is often immediate, leading to more costs as the vacancy persists. Enter artificial intelligence that can streamline the candidate screening process by matching critical role-specific skills with existing candidates in enterprise talent pipelines (e.g., direct sourcing, talent marketplaces, etc.). AI can narrow the field even further through questionnaires and even simulated exercises to test candidate skill proficiency — all while increasing hiring speed and attaining higher-quality candidates. With 74% of businesses planning to leverage AI to enhance the candidate experience (per Ardent Partners and FOWX research), it’s clear that the potential of the technology is being recognized. This is critical because it means enterprises can use data to understand how and why candidates are choosing our business or leaving/jetting for other companies. It also exposes gaps in the hiring process that must be remedied to enable real-time hiring capabilities. The war for talent is raging…having a process that essentially finds those talent needles in the haystack is the competitive differentiator.
  • Expand overall total workforce visibility. Much of the value attained by artificial intelligence is more efficient identification, organization, and utilization of data. Prescriptive analytics, for example, provides the optimal use of collected data. When evaluating the total workforce holistically, enterprises need insights into their full-time and contingent employees. What are their skillsets? Which department do they work in? How long have they been contracted with the enterprise? What is their past project or team participation. Answering these questions creates a strategic profile for every full-time and contingent employee. Those total workforce profiles make real-time hiring and seamless succession planning a reality. Transparency into both operational challenges and available talent is a dual threat to lagging competitors.
  • Leverage predictive analytics and scenario planning. Ultimately, organizations want the ability to use data to predict future scenarios and potential outcomes. As a subset of artificial intelligence, predictive analytics is used in a variety of operational settings, particularly for supply chain planning. However, it is just as valuable for contingent workforce management as a predictor of future talent needs. Predictive analytics takes prescriptive analytics and workforce profiles a step further by combining operational and profile data to identify talent deficiencies and operational weaknesses, while also projecting how talent should be utilized to close those gaps. This is transformative for large-scale enterprises with tens of thousands of employees across the globe. It can also be talent-defining in scenarios where succession planning comes into play. So much of the hiring focus is on the “immediate need” rather than the gaps silently forming with aging workers eyeing their next opportunity post-retirement. Predictive analytics can address workforce scalability related to resignations, retirements, labor movements, etc., and how those will shape the workforce short and long term. In the case of a recession or other economic crisis where scalability becomes an essential strategy, enterprises can leverage internal talent data and combine it with market and labor insights to more effectively understand how operations will be affected. Which skills are required immediately versus long-term CWM planning? The ability to scale the workforce quickly and efficiently cannot be understated.

AI Becomes a Permanent Fixture for Talent Strategy

Artificial intelligence is becoming a permanent fixture as part of today’s enterprise operations and talent management strategies. For the contingent workforce, AI serves as an essential technology to streamline candidate pairings with operational needs, while increasing transparency of available skillsets and workforce contributions. Those insights prove valuable when talent gaps appear, or workforce scaling is necessary. Artificial intelligence will continue to evolve and with it, more CWM opportunities will emerge. Today, leverage the AI capabilities that exist to better plan for tomorrow.

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The Recession-Ready Enterprise

Business LeadershipContingent WorkforceDirect SourcingGeneral InsightsTalent AcquisitionTechnology and Innovation by John Yuva on

There has been great debate in recent months about a recession. Are we already in a recession? If a recession occurs, will it be light or something more impactful? Or will the economy be resilient and avoid a recession entirely? Enterprises in technology and media industries are already reacting to recession fears by laying off tens of thousands of workers. As we move through the first quarter of 2023, how could a recession impact the extended workforce?

Business As Usual

There’s no doubt we’re experiencing challenging economic times. However, businesses must continue with mission-critical projects and initiatives that often require specialized expertise. The skills gap remains inherent in many enterprises, leading to continued demand for contingent workers. And as the Future of Work Exchange research indicates, 47.5% of the enterprise workforce is comprised of extended workers. That figure cannot be ignored, especially during times of economic distress.

Digitization Evolution and Workforce Mercenaries

Despite the recessionary climate, there is an enterprise evolution occurring: digitization. Whether it’s talent acquisition platforms, accounts payable solutions, or larger enterprise resource planning systems, businesses are transforming from tactical (manual) to strategic (digital) strategies across the operational landscape. And with digitization comes the extended workforce.

As more enterprises pursue digitization, mission-critical hyper-specific skillsets and expertise are not only preferred but required. Transforming into the digital era means companies are implementing new technologies that leverage artificial intelligence, machine learning, blockchain, and other Industry 4.0 automation. Enterprise integration of these technologies requires specific skill sets and competencies that are often outside the capabilities of existing permanent employees.

Hiring full-time employees for digitization projects and initiatives does not make fiscal sense (particularly during a recession) unless the role is a data analyst or scientist critical to interpreting daily analytical outputs. Otherwise, contingent workers specializing in digital transformation integration and implementation are the ideal choices — aligning contractual agreements with workforce budgets. Hyper-skilled talent is the future for enterprises expanding their product and service offerings through automation.

Supply chain and procurement are fields that employ hyper-skilled talent. Enterprises will hire a chief procurement officer to transform the procurement department through digitization and eliminate manual processes. A timeline may last two years, but once the project is complete, the individual seeks out other organizations with transformation as a critical initiative. These types of workforce mercenaries are much more abundant today than a decade ago. Their sole purpose is the execution of strategically detailed operational initiatives to elevate the enterprise competitively before taking on a new assignment elsewhere.

Sourcing such talent is already available to many organizations through workforce platforms and processes.

The Recession-Ready Enterprise

Direct sourcing and talent marketplaces are now table stakes for enterprise competitiveness. The use of these channels is necessary to source extended workers and hyper-skilled talent with current, specialized competencies. Recent Future of Work Exchange research found that 82% of businesses utilized more extended talent in 2022 than in 2021. During a recession, organizations can specify specific hours for extended workers who are already accustomed to flexible schedules or defined project timelines.

The workforce mercenary is likely to find an abundance of opportunities in a recession with 73% of businesses planning to divert external talent to mission-critical type initiatives and projects over the next six months. This is a clear sign that organizations are taking a more proactive stance against a possible recession than in the past. It appears quite possible that talent acquisition strategies will also shift during a recessionary period as the extended workforce closes critical skill gaps.

Enterprises with the ability to scale their extended workforce before, during, and after a recession are best positioned to weather an economic downturn. Seek workforce mercenaries for those transformational initiatives, while leveraging external talent for skills gap challenges. It’s a critical balance, but one that separates the modern enterprise from those still operating at a tactical level.

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The Skills-Based Organization and the Staffing Outlook for 2023

Contingent WorkforceDiversity and InclusionTalent Acquisition by Christopher J. Dwyer on

There’s no question that the world of staffing has entered yet another period of uncertainty. Besieged by the chaos of the COVID-19 pandemic and then, thankfully, amped by a greater need for workforce flexibility and an increased utilization of contingent workers, the staffing arena faces a watershed year ahead.

Ardent Partners and Future of Work Exchange research has discovered that 82% of businesses leveraged more extended talent in 2022 than 2021, proving that:

  • The extended workforce’s great bump in utilization wasn’t just an anomaly due to the pandemic’s impact on fluctuating talent needs.
  • Non-employee talent remains a viable and strategic way to not just augment staff, but truly drive mission-critical endeavors with high-quality, top-tier skillsets and expertise, and;
  • With direct sourcing, AI-enabled hiring, and digital recruitment paving the way for the Future of Work movement, the realm of extended talent translates into an opportunity for businesses to thrive during even the most challenging of times.

Glider.ai is a Best-in-Class, next-generation artificial intelligence platform that has disrupted the staffing and recruitment technology markets. Glider AI’s unique talent intelligence platform provides its users with fully-automated tools to boost candidate assessment and allow hiring managers (and other talent management executives) to remotely execute deep, skill-based recruitment strategies with a robust layer of strength and rigor.

The solution recently polled over 130 staffing, recruiting, HR, and contingent workforce leaders on their intentions, challenges, and general perspectives on the talent arena.

Takeaway #1: Diversity Is, As It Should Be, A Critical Priority

Nearly 90% of executives in Glider’s research study state that initiatives related diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) are a “medium-to-high” priority entering the new year. Of that figure, over 50% deemed it a high priority, proving an old mantra of the Future of the Work Exchange: a diverse talent community is the deepest talent community, especially as it pertains to the extended workforce.

While established diversity programs previously existed in many enterprises, the events and civil unrest of the past three years have driven many businesses to develop and communicate more purpose-driven goals which are linked to societal, economic, technological, and sustainable shifts. To achieve these goals, a large number of businesses are trying to harness the power of a diverse workforce. Glider’s new research study is a pure reflection of the modern enterprise’s 2023 commitment to DE&I in its hiring efforts for both full-time and temporary staff.

Takeaway #2: High-Tech or Low-Tech, It Doesn’t Matter: The Skills-Based Organization is King

Nearly 70% of businesses in the Glider study stated that high-tech and technical skills are currently a high priority for hiring and recruitment. Even though some of the world’s most massive tech brands, such as Alphabet (Google), Microsoft, Meta (Facebook), Amazon, and Salesforce have executed mass layoffs in recent months (and in the case of Alphabet and Microsoft, literally just over the past two weeks), there is still a incredible need for professionals with high-tech skills.

Why? The answer is simple: we are living in a globalized and digitized world of work, in which digital transformation is an ongoing endeavor in nearly every enterprise, not to mention the overarching digital requirements in operating in a networked economy. Some of the highest-level talent in digital fields can only be found in the ranks of the extended workforce, which translates into the need for the average organization to devote more resources to enhancing contingent workforce management.

Too, the flip side of this equation isn’t even a counterbalance, as nearly 80% of organizations state that non-technical roles are a “medium-to-high” priority for businesses. Combined with the aforementioned high-tech stat and we can come to a direct conclusion: the skills-based organization is king.

In 2023, there will be many discussions around the concept of the skills-based organization. And this doesn’t just mean that businesses prioritize the skillsets they have within their ranks or within their talent pools or talent communities, but rather center the way they work around enterprises skillsets, expertise, and experience. By fractionalizing jobs/projects and segmenting the work from the workers, enterprises can more effectively align what needs to be done with the know-how required to address it.

Takeaway #3: Upskilling Remains a Key Focus for Businesses

The new Glider study found that 83% of enterprises placed a “medium-to-high” priority on upskilling as a means to engage top-tier candidates and retain top talent. This just reinforces the idea of the skills-based organization, as expertise has become the de-facto weapon in a skills-driven, digitized business arena. As enterprises to balance an ongoing pandemic, a looming recession, and an increasingly-globalized (and, of course, more competitive) market, skills become ever-so-critical.

Upcoming Future of Work Exchange research finds that nearly 70% of businesses are actively focused on engaging new and advanced skillsets in anticipation of digital transformation, further reinforcing the need to 1) upskill current workers (both FTEs and contingent) and 2) engage talented professionals that can make an immediate impact. The greater focus on upskilling (which is an entirely different entity than reskilling) is crucial for a variety of reasons, including:

  • The digital enterprise now requires progressive skillsets that are needed to thrive in an evolving world of work.
  • Upskilling is a ideal way for business leaders to combat extreme talent shortages by developing highly-skilled workers from within the organization, and;
  • It prepares enterprises to weather workforce disruptions (due to challenging economic conditions or other market events) and can serve as beneficial attribute of the company brand when developing new talent acquisition strategies.

Download Glider’s new research study and learn more about skills-based organizations and the state of staffing in 2023.

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