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Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
Table of Contents Page
1. Introduction 2
2. Executive Summary 3
3. Survey Findings 6
3.1 Pervasiveness of Talent Shortage 6
3.1.1 Incidence of having vacancies 6
3.1.2 Level of Difficulty in filling vacancies 7
3.1.3 Difficult to fill job levels 9
3.1.4 Difficult to fill positions 11
3.1.5 Main causes of recruitment difficulty 12
3.2 Impact of Talent Shortage on Business 13
3.2.1 Intensity of impact on business 13
3.2.2 Types of impact on business 13
3.2.3 Incidence of adopting strategies to overcome recruitment difficulty 14
3.2.4 Types of strategies to overcome recruitment difficulty 15
3.2.5 Recruitment channels 19
3.3 Recruitment and Work Readiness of University / College / School Leavers 20
3.3.1 Incidence of hiring University / College / School Leavers in past two years 20
3.3.2 Competency of University / College / School Leavers 20
3.3.3 Strengths and Weaknesses of University / College / School Leavers 21
3.4 Outlook on Talent Shortage 22
3.4.1 Outlook in near and mid term 22
3.4.2 Government manpower policies deemed necessary to alleviate talent shortages 22
Appendix : Profile of Participants 25
1
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
1. Introduction
The Hong Kong Institute of Human Resource Management (HKIHRM) recently conducted a survey on talent shortage in Hong Kong. The survey was administered online among HKIHRM members and other HR professionals.
Data collection was conducted in two rounds :
• Round 1 from July 23 - August 14, 2015
• Round 2 from October 6 – 14, 2015
A total of 184 completed questionnaires were received for analysis in Round 1 while 150 were received in Round 2.
The objectives of the study are summarised as follows :
• To determine the pervasiveness of talent shortage and the level of difficulty in filling vacancies
• To explore the causes that have led to talent shortage
• To understand the impact of talent shortage on business and strategies adopted by employers to cope with the problem
• To forecast difficulty in filling vacancies in the near and mid term
2
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
2. Executive Summary
Pervasiveness of Talent Shortage
Talent shortage is a challenging problem for Hong Kong employers. In October 2015, 25% of
companies surveyed reported filling vacancies with the right talents to be extremely difficult
while another 66% claimed it was quite difficult. Companies in the Logistics / Transport /
Transport Services sector and IT sector are among the most affected. 64% and 50% of employers
from these two sectors respectively indicated having recruitment difficulties (extremely difficult).
When analysed by company size, small companies with less than 100 employees reported having
extreme difficult in recruitment went up by 10 percentage points in early October to 28%. On the
other hand, the pressure to fill vacancies among large companies with 500 employees or above
somewhat lessened. The corresponding figure went down to 20% from 36% in July / August.
Difficult to Fill Job Levels & Positions
Recruiting General / supporting staff continues to present the biggest challenge to employers. In
early October, over 62% of responding companies mentioned that vacancies at this level were
hard to fill. On the other hand, positions at top management level is relatively less difficult to fill
(17%).
The top 10 positions employers are having difficulty filling remain largely the same across the two
survey periods. Labourers, unskilled workers took top position in July / August but fell to
seventh in October. Moving in the opposite direction, the category of sales staff rose to top the
list in round two.
Not having enough candidates across all staff levels is driving fierce competition. Some
employers resort to taking applicants that are less experienced and/or lack the required skills or
qualifications. Hygiene factors such as work hours, work conditions and job nature are perceived
to be causing difficulty in the recruitment of General / Supporting level employees.
3
Top 10 Difficult-to-Fill Jobs
July / August Early October
1 Labourers, unskilled workers 33% Sales staff 31%
2 Engineers 30% Engineers 25%
3 Sales staff 30% Technicians 25%
4 Technicians 30% IT staff 22%
5 IT staff 28% Management / Executives 19%
6 Customer service/ Customer support staff
26% Customer service / Customer support staff
17%
7 Management / Executives 24% Labourers, unskilled workers 17%
8 Skilled trade workers 20% HR staff 17%
9 Drivers 17% Skilled trade workers 14%
10 Marketing / PR / Communications staff
14% Marketing / PR / Communications staff
14%
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
2. Executive Summary (cont’d)
Impact of Talent Shortage on Business
There is a consensus among participating companies that their business has been affected as a result of talent shortage in Hong Kong. The proportion claiming that business has been significantly affected went down marginally by 5 percentage points to 28% in early October.
The most likely consequences was expected to be an increase in workload / pressure for other staff (88%). In addition, 59% expected staff morale / engagement to be affected and the same proportion said staff turnover could increase. At fourth position is increase in compensation / operation costs (42%) which is likely to be the consequence of the other types of impact.
Strategies to Overcome Difficulty in Filling Vacancies
Increasing salary (59%) was the most widely-used strategy in addressing talent shortage in October although the proportion was down from 66% in July / August. 54% of hiring managers also explored new talent source by expanding their recruitment channels while 52% resorted to accepting less qualified / less experienced candidates.
A significant proportion of employers are still replying on tradition recruitment channels to reach potential candidates. 88% uses newspaper / recruitment website and 70% sources candidates through staff referral / ex-employee pool. Leveraging on new recruitment channels such as social networking sites is not yet pervasive.
Work Readiness of University / College / School Leavers
Recruiting University / College / School leavers is commonplace with four out of five employers having done so in the past two years. The majority are satisfied with these new recruits as 58% of hirers rated them as quite or very competent at work.
Having “good attitude or personality / motivated” and “basic computer literacy” are the top qualities of these graduates. On the other hand, they are perceived to be lacking in the soft skills (problem solving, ability to work under pressure, communication skills) required to excel at work.
4
Top 5 Strengths
Good attitude or personality / motivated 63%
Basic computer literacy 62%
Advanced IT or software skills 40%
Teamwork 40%
Common senses, Communication skills
30%
Top 5 Weaknesses
Problem solving 69%
Ability to work under pressure 66%
Communication skills 63%
Good attitude or personality / motivated 60%
Common senses, Planning & organisation
55%
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
2. Executive Summary (cont’d)
Outlook on Talent Shortage
Some modest easing in the talent shortage problem in the mid-term is forecast as the proportion of employers who expect filling vacancies to be extremely difficult in three years’ time dropped to 25% compared to 16% for now.
The top three government manpower strategies deemed necessary to alleviate talent shortage include “Formulate long-term manpower strategies” (70%), “ Drive education institutions to develop curriculum in line with market needs” (62%) and “ Introduce family friendly policies” (40%).
5
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
3. Survey Findings
3.1 Pervasiveness of Talent Shortage
3.1.1 Incidence of Having Vacancies
The incidence of job vacancy among responding companies remained at a high level of over 90% during the two survey periods.
Analysis by Company Size
Small companies with under 100 employees are relatively less likely to have vacancies to fill than their more sizeable counterparts. Close to 20% of small companies reported having vacancies in both survey periods.
6
93%
7%
92%
8%
Yes
No
July / August Early October
Base : all responding companies, Round 1 N=184, Round 2 N=150
% of companies with vacant positions
July / August October
All Companies 92% 93%
Under 100 79% 82%
100 – 499 96% 98%
500 and above 99% 100%
Any Vacancies to Fill ?
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
By Business Sector
Although still among the top five sectors having much recruitment difficulty in October, Restaurant / Catering sector saw some alleviation in talent shortage compared to three months ago. Only one third of responding companies indicated it was extremely difficult to fill vacancies compared to 60% in July / August. On the other hand, Logistics / Transport / Transport related services sector moved up and topped the list in October with close to two thirds of responding companies in this sector claiming it extremely difficult to fill vacant positions. At 50%, IT sector took the second position moving up from fifth place in last survey period.
7
* Business sectors with less than 5 companies are excluded
25%
66%
9%
0%
25%
68%
6%
1%
Extremely difficult
Quite difficult
Not so difficult
Not at all difficult
July / August Early October
Base : all responding companies, Round 1 N=184, Round 2 N=150
3.1.2 Level of Difficulty in Filling Vacancies (cont’d)
The talent shortage problem is widespread in Hong Kong. One quarter of responding employers claimed to be facing extreme difficulty in recruitment while another two thirds found it to be quite difficult.
% Extremely Difficult to Fill Vacancies : Top 5 sectors
July / August Early October
ALL COMPANIES 25% ALL COMPANIES 25%
1. Restaurant / Catering 60% 1. Logistics/ Transport/ Transport
services 64%
2. Electricity / Gas / Petrol 50% 2. IT 50%
3. Business/ Professional services 40% 3. Business/ Professional services 39%
4. Community/ Social/ Personal services
40% 4. Wholesale / Import & Export/
Trading / Distribution 36%
5. IT 38% 5. Restaurant / Catering 33%
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong 8
By Company Size % Extremely Difficult to Fill Vacancies
July / August Early October
ALL COMPANIES 25% 25%
Under 100 18% 28%
100 - 499 19% 24%
500 or above 36% 20%
3.1.2 Level of Difficulty in Filling Vacancies (cont’d)
By Company Size
Compared to July / August, the pressure to fill vacancies in October somewhat lessened among large companies with 500 employees or more. On the other hand, the proportion of small companies with under 100 employees reporting it to be extremely difficult to fill positions went up by ten percentage points to 28%.
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
3.1.3 Difficult to Fill Job Levels
Recruiting General / supporting staff continues to present the biggest challenge to employers. On the other hand, positions at top management level is relatively less difficult to fill. Only 17% of responding companies indicated having difficult finding suitable new recruits at this level in October.
9
The difficulty in recruiting General / Supporting level staff is more of a challenge to medium sized and large companies than small companies with under 100 employees.
14%
47%
39%
45%
25%
40%
52%
62%
20%
51%
43%
74%
Top Management
Managerial
Supervisory /Administrative
General / Supporting
Under 100 100 - 499 500+
13%
48%
65%
41%
14%
39%
49%
73%
23%
43%
45%
70%
July / August Early October
20%
47%
45%
62%
17%
43%
53%
62%
Top Management
Managerial
Supervisory / Administrative
General / Supporting
Jul / Aug
Early Oct
Base : all responding companies, Round 1 N=184, Round 2 N=150
Base : Round 1 - companies with Under 100 staff N=51, companies with 100-499 staff N=52, companies with 500+ staff N=69 Round 2 - companies with Under 100 staff N=46, companies with 100-499 staff N=49, companies with 500+ staff N=44
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
3.1.3 Difficult to Fill Job Levels (cont’d)
10
Business Sector
Staff level most frequently reported as difficult to recruit
July / August Early October
Business/ Professional services Managerial Supervisory / Administrative
Banking/ Financial services/ Insurance Managerial Managerial ,
Supervisory / Administrative, General / Supporting
Community/ Social/ Personal services General / Supporting -
Construction/ Property development/ Real estate
Managerial , Supervisory / Administrative
Managerial
Electricity / Gas / Petrol Managerial , General /
Supporting -
Tourism / Travel Services General / Supporting -
Logistics / Transport / Transport services
General / Supporting General / Supporting
Manufacturing General / Supporting General / Supporting
Restaurant / Catering General / Supporting -
Retail Managerial General / Supporting
Wholesale, Import/Export, Trading, Distribution
General / Supporting General / Supporting
Education - Managerial
IT Supervisory / Administrative Supervisory / Administrative,
General / Supporting
NGO / Statutory body General / Supporting General / Supporting
Engineering - Supervisory / Administrative
Note : sectors with less than 5 companies are not listed
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
3.1.4 Difficult to Fill Positions
In July / August, labourers & unskilled workers topped the list of hard-to-fill positions with one third reporting that difficulty in recruitment of this types of workers. The corresponding figure in October fell to 17% which may be indicative of some temporary relief in shortage.
Meanwhile, Sales staff moved up to become the category most difficult to recruit from third last time. Engineers, Technicians and IT continued to be in great demand across the two survey periods. On the other hand, drivers fell out of the list in October and HR staff is new to the top ten having climbed from 11th to eighth.
11
Top 10 Difficult-to-Fill Positions
July / August Early October
1 Labourers, unskilled workers 33% Sales staff 31%
2 Engineers 30% Engineers 25%
3 Sales staff 30% Technicians 25%
4 Technicians 30% IT staff 22%
5 IT staff 28% Management / Executives 19%
6 Customer service/ Customer
support staff 26%
Customer service / Customer
support staff 17%
7 Management / Executives 24% Labourers, unskilled workers 17%
8 Skilled trade workers 20% HR staff 17%
9 Drivers 17% Skilled trade workers 14%
10 Marketing / PR /
Communications staff 14%
Marketing / PR /
Communications staff 14%
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
3.1.5 Main Causes of Recruitment Difficulty
Not having enough candidates across all staff levels is driving fierce competition among employers. Some are forced to take less experienced candidates and / or applicants that lack the required skills or qualifications. Hygiene factors such as work hours, work conditions and job nature are perceived to be causing difficulty in the recruitment of General / Supporting level employees.
12
Strong competition / better package from other employers 48% 63% 70% 78%
Lack available applicants / no applicants 61% 63% 72% 71%
Lack of relevant experience 35% 63% 59% 47%
Lack of required skills 30% 55% 61% 47%
Lack of qualifications 13% 33% 20% 19%
Poor career progression / lack prospects 13% 18% 23% 29%
Job entails shift work / unsociable hours 4% 3% 18% 35%
Poor image of company / sector / occupation 0% 7% 4% 10%
Harsh working conditions / challenging job nature 13% 25% 24% 36%
Implementation of statutory minimum wage 4% 5% 5% 28%
Remote location / poor public transport 9% 15% 15% 26%
Others 0% 5% 4% 5%
Base : Round 2 companies having difficulty in filling vacancies top management level, N= 23 companies having difficulty in filling vacancies managerial level, N= 60 companies having difficulty in filling vacancies supervisory / administrative level N= 747 companies having difficulty in filling vacancies general / supporting level N= 86
Top Management Managerial
Supervisory / Administrative
General / Supporting
Strong competition/ better offer from others
Lack available applicants / no applicants
Lack relevant experience
Lack required skills
Lack qualifications
Poor career progression / lack prospects
Job entails shift work / unsociable hours
Poor image of company/ sector/ occupation
Harsh work conditions/ challenging job nature
Implementation of minimum wage
Remote location / poor public transport
Others
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
3.2 Impact of Talent Shortage on Business
3.2.1 Intensity of Impact on Business
There is a consensus among all respondents that their companies’ business has been impacted at varying degree as a result of talent shortage. The proportion claiming that their business has been significantly affected went down marginally by 5 percentage points to 28% in early October.
3.2.2 Types of Impact on Business
Company staff is directly affected by talent shortages due to increase in workload / pressure (88%). Affecting staff morale / engagement and increase in staff turnover were on the list at 59%. While these consequences directly impact internal work efficiency, there is also cost implications to the organisation. Ranked fourth, increase in compensation / operation costs were mentioned by 42% of respondents.
13
33%
62%
5%
Significant impact
Some impact
Not much impact
Base : companies having difficulty in filling vacancies, Round 1 N= 172, Round 2 N=-139
28%
70%
2%
88%
59%
59%
42%
40%
37%
35%
26%
26%
25%
17%
4%
Increase workload / pressure for other staff
Affect staff morale / staff engagement
Increase employee turnover
Increase compensation / operation costs
Delay in projects
Drop in service standard
Have difficulties meeting quality standards
Increase outsource work
Delay developing new products or services
Have difficulties introducing new work…
Lose business to competitors
Others
Base : companies reporting that their business were impacted by talent shortages, Round 1 N= 172
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
3.2.3 Incidence of Strategies to Overcome Recruitment Difficulty
A vast majority of nine out of ten respondents reported that their company had already taken steps to tackle the talent shortage problem in both survey periods.
14
90%
10%
Yes
No
Base : companies having difficulty in filling vacancies, Round 1 N= 172, Round 2 N=139
89%
11%
July / August Early October
Any Strategies to Fill Vacancies with Right Talents?
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
3.2.4 Types of Strategies to Overcome Recruitment Difficulty
The majority of employers tackle the problem of they face filling jobs by adopting traditional strategies. Implemented by close to six in ten employers, increasing salary is the most common strategy adopted. 54% opted to cast the net wider by expanding recruitment channels while slightly over half (51%) resorted to accepting less qualified or less experienced applicants. Another 51% relied on staff retention.
Strategies that tap into new talent pools are not yet pervasive. Only 39% of companies have leveraged on strategies that reach into untapped talent pools*.
15
59%
54%
52%
51%
35%
35%
33%
30%
26%
26%
23%
23%
23%
20%
17%
15%
13%
11%
Increase salary
Expand recruitment channels
Accept less qualified / less experienced recruits
Focus more on retention than recruiting new staff
Enhance benefits
Hire more contingent workers
Improve employer brand
Introduce or expand apprenticeship / internship /…
Job re-design
Up-skill existing staff
Extend retirement age
Outsource work
Create curriculum aligned with talent needs with…
Recruit passive candidates to re-enter labour market
Import labour / recruit from overseas
Introduce flexible work arrangement
Job process automation
Hire more disabled persons / ethnic minorities
Base : Round 2 companies reporting that their business had been impacted by talent shortages N=124
Introduce or expand apprenticeship / internship / trainee schemes
Create curriculum aligned with talent needs with education institutions
* Any one of the following three strategies - recruit passive candidates to re-enter labour market, import labour or recruit from overseas or hire more disabled persons / ethnic minorities
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
3.2.4 Types of Strategies to Overcome Recruitment Difficulty (cont’d)
There are early signs of some small relief in talent shortages. Out of the 18 strategies listed, 11 saw a drop in the incidence of adoption in October compared with July / August. As a result, the average number of strategies adopted fell from 6.1 to 5.5.
16
Strategies Adopted to Cope with Talent Shortages
Early October Change vs. Jul / Aug
(percentage points)
Increase salary 59% -7
Expand recruitment channels 54% -3
Accept less qualified / less experienced recruits 52% 2
Focus more on retention than recruiting new staff 51% 3
Enhance benefits 35% 2
Hire more contingent workers 35% -2
Improve employer brand 33% 4
Introduce or expand apprenticeship / internship / trainee schemes
30% -6
Job re-design 26% -12
Up-skill existing staff 26% -13
Extend retirement age 23% -7
Outsource work 23% -7
Create curriculum aligned with talent needs with education institutions
23% -8
Recruit passive candidates to re-enter labour market 20% 0
Import labour / recruit from overseas 17% 0
Introduce flexible work arrangement 15% -6
Job process automation 13% -8
Hire more disabled persons / ethnic minorities 11% 4
Base : companies that took steps to deal with talent shortage : Round 2 N= 124
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
Strategies Adopted to Overcome Difficulties in Filling Vacancies - by Business Sector
Business Sector*
Top 3 Strategies Adopted to Overcome Difficulties in Filling Vacancies (Early October)
1 2 3
Business / Professional services
• Expand recruitment channels
• Accept less qualified / experienced recruits
• Focus on retention
• Improve employer brand
• Job re-design
Banking / Financial services / Insurance
• Increase salary
• Accept less qualified / experienced recruits
• Focus on retention
• Improve employer brand
• Recruit passive candidates to re-enter job market
• Expand recruitment channels
• Introduce flexible work arrangement
Construction/ Property development/ Real Estate
• Increase salary
• Focus on retention
• Improve employer brand
• Accept less qualified / less experienced staff
• Expand recruitment channel
Logistics / Transport / Transport services
• Increase salary
• Expand recruitment channels
• Enhance benefits
• Extend retirement age
• Focus on retention
• Improve employer brand
• Hire more contingent staff
Manufacturing • Focus on retention • Increase salary
• Accept less qualified / less experienced recruits
Retail • Expand recruitment
channels • Increase salary • Enhance benefits
Wholesale / Import & Export / Trading / Distribution
• Increase salary
• Expand recruitment channels
• Focus on retention
• Job re-design
• Accept less qualified / less experienced recruits
Education
• Hire more contingent staff
• Increase salary
• Focus on retention
• Job re-design
• Expand recruitment channels
IT
• Increase salary
• Introduce or expand apprenticeship / internship / trainee schemes
• Import / recruit from overseas
• Accept less qualified / less experienced recruits
• Expand recruitment channels
NGO / Statutory body
• Increase salary • Hire more contingent staff
• Accept less qualified / less experienced recruits
Engineering • Focus on retention
• Accept less qualified / less experienced recruits
• Expand recruitment channels
17
* Business sectors with less than 5 responding companies are excluded
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
Strategies Adopted to Overcome Difficulties in Filling Vacancies - by Company Size
Company size (No of employees)
Top 3 Strategies Adopted to Overcome Difficulties in Filling Vacancies (Early October)
1 2 3
Under 100 • Focus on retention • Increase salary • Expand recruitment
channels
100 – 499 • Increase salary • Accept less qualified / less experienced staff
• Expand recruitment channels
500 or above • Expand recruitment
channels • Accept less qualified /
less experienced staff • Increase salary
18
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
3.2.5 Recruitment Channels
Traditional recruitment channels of newspapers and recruitment websites are the most popular among employers (88%) with staff referral / tapping into pool of ex-employees following in second position (70%). Leveraging company website (57%) and engaging Headhunter / recruitment agency (57%) form the next tier.
Leveraging new recruitment channels such as social networking website is not yet pervasive with only one third of employers reporting they have used this type of channels for recruitment.
19
88%
70%
57%
57%
41%
33%
24%
17%
Newspaper / Recruitment website
Staff referral / Tapping into ex-employee pool
Company website
Headhunter / Recruitment agency
Job Expo / Recruitment day
Social networking website
Sponsor scholarship / Management traineeprogram
Campus recruitment
Base : companies with vacancies in past 12 months, Round 1 N=173
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
3.3 Recruitment and Work Readiness of University / College / School Leavers
3.3.1 Incidence of Hiring University / College / School Leavers in Past Two years
Hiring University / College / School leavers is quite prevalent in the market as four out of five companies indicated that education leavers had been recruited to fill positions in the past two years.
20
80%
20%
Yes
No
Base : All responding companies, Round 1 N= 184
3.3.2 Competency of University / College / School Leavers
The majority of respondents are satisfied with the recruited University / College / School leavers with close to 60% rating them as very or quite competent. Those who found the competency level of their new recruits to be below par accounted for 41%. These figures indicate that these new recruits are generally adequately equipped with the right skill mix for work.
1%
57%
40%
1%
Very competent
Quite competent
Not that competent
Not at all competent
Base : All companies that recruited education leavers in the past 2 years, Round 1 N=148
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
3.3.3 Strengths and Weaknesses of University / College / School Leavers
University / College / School leavers are perceived to have “Good attitude or personality / Motivated” (63%). These new recruits are also strong on “Basic computer literacy” (60%) and “Advanced IT or software skills” (40%).
According to respondents who rated University / College / School leavers as not quite or not at all competent, they lack the soft skills required to perform at work. The major areas of inadequacy include “Problem solving” (69%) , “Ability to work under pressure” (66%) and “Communication Skills” (63%). While good attitude is rated as a top strength, it is also seen as a key weakness by 60%.
21
Base : Companies rating education leavers as very or quite competent, Round 1 N=86 Companies rating education leavers as not quite or not at all competent, Round 1
N=62
Top 5 Strengths
Good attitude or personality / motivated
63%
Basic computer literacy 62%
Advanced IT or software skills 40%
Teamwork 40%
Common senses, Communication skills
30%
Top 5 Weaknesses
Problem solving 69%
Ability to work under pressure 66%
Communication skills 63%
Good attitude or personality / motivated
60%
Common senses, Planning & organisation
55%
Base : those rating education leavers as very/quite competent Round 1 N=86
Base : those rating education leavers as not quite/not at all competent Round 1 N=62
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
25%
16%
16%
66%
69%
62%
9%
13%
20%
0%
2%
2%
Now
Next 12 months
Next 3 years
Exremely difficult Quite difficult Not so difficult Not at all difficult
3.4 Outlook on Talent Shortage
3.4.1 Outlook in Near and Mid Term
Some modest easing in the talent shortage problem is expected in the mid-term as the proportion of participating companies who forecast filling vacancies to be extremely difficult in three years’ time dropped from 25% to 16%. At the same time, 22% of employers reckoned that talent recruitment would no longer be so difficult / at all difficult, up from 9%.
22
3.4.2 Government Manpower Polices Deemed Necessary to Alleviate Talent Shortages
Cited by 70% of respondents, “Formulating long-term manpower strategies” is the most important government initiative that helps to alleviate the talent shortage problem. This is followed closely by “Driving institutions for vacation education & training in line with market needs” at 62%.
70%
62%
40%
39%
36%
28%
7%
Formulate long-term manpower strategies
Drive education institutions to developcurriculum in line with market needs
Introduce family friendly policies
Encourage extension of retirement age
Relax restrictions on labour import
Encourage old-aged / ethnically diversified /disabled workforce
Others
Base : All responding companies, Round 1 N= 184
Base : all responding companies, Round 2 N=150
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
Government Strategies Deemed Necessary to Alleviate Talent Shortage by Business Sector
Business Sector* Top 3 Government Strategies Deemed Necessary
1 2 3
Business / Professional services
• Introduce family friendly policies
• Drive education institutions for curriculum in line with market needs
• Relax labour import restrictions
Banking / Financial services / Insurance
• Formulate long-term manpower strategies
• Drive educationa institutions for curriculum in line with market needs
• Introduce family friendly policies
Community / Social / Personal services
• Formulate long-term manpower strategies
• Relax labour import restrictions
• Encourage retirement age extension
Construction/ Property development/ Real Estate
• Formulate long-term manpower strategies
• Drive ducation institutions for curriculum in line with market needs
• Relax labour import restrictions
Electricity / Gas / Petrol
• Formulate long-term manpower strategies
• Drive education institutions for curriculum in line with market needs
• Introduce family friendly policies
Tourism / Travel services
• Formulate long-term manpower strategies
• Drive education institutions for curriculum in line with market needs
• Relax labour import restrictions
• Encourage retirement age extension
Hotel • Relax labour import restrictions
• Formulate long-term manpower strategies
• Drive education institutions for curriculum in line with market needs
Logistics / Transport / Transport services
• Formulate long-term manpower strategies
• Drive education institutions for curriculum in line with market needs
• Introduce family friendly policies
Manufacturing • Formulate long-term
manpower strategies • Drive education institutions
for curriculum in line with market needs
• Encourage retirement age extension
Restaurant / Catering
• Formulate long-term manpower strategies
• Relax labour imports restrictions
• Encourage retirement age extension
• Encourage old-aged / ethnically diversified workforce
Retail
• Formulate long-term manpower strategies
• Drive education institutions for curriculum in line with market needs
• Introduce family friendly policies
Wholesale / Import & Export / Trading / Distribution
• Drive education institutions for curriculum in line with market needs
• Formulate long-term manpower strategies
• Encourage old-aged / ethnically diversified workforce
IT
• Drive education institutions for curriculum in line with market needs
• Formulate long-term manpower strategies
• Encourage retirement age extension
• Introduce family friendly policies
NGO / Statutory body
• Drive education institutions for curriculum in line with market needs
• Encourage retirement age extension
• Encourage old-aged / ethnically diversified workforce
• Formulate long-term manpower strategies
23
* Business sectors with less than 5 responding companies are excluded
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
Government Strategies Deemed Necessary to Alleviate Talent Shortage by Company Size
Company Size (No of employees)
Top 3 Government Strategies Deemed Necessary
1 2 3
Under 100
• Drive education institutions for curriculum in line with market needs
• Formulate long-term manpower strategies
• Introduce family friendly policies
100 – 499
• Formulate long-term manpower strategies
• Drive education institutions for curriculum in line with market needs
• Encourage retirement age extension
500 or above
• Formulate long-term manpower strategies
• Drive education institutions for curriculum in line with market needs
• Relax labour imports restrictions
24
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
Appendix : Profile of Participants
Sector
25
Business Sector Round 1 Round 2
BASE 184 150
Business services/ Professional services 8% 15%
Banking / Financial services / Insurance 7% 7%
Community / Social/ Personal services 3% 3%
Construction / Property development/ Real estate 11% 9%
Electricity / Gas / Petrol 3% 1%
Engineering 2% 5%
Tourism / Travel Services 3% 2%
Health Services 1% 2%
Hotel 3% 1%
Logistics / Transport / Transport services 9% 8%
Manufacturing 11% 7%
NGO / Statutory body 3% 7%
Restaurant / Catering 3% 2%
Retail 8% 9%
Security Services 1% 0%
Telecommunication 1% 1%
Wholesale, Import / Export, Trading, Distribution 10% 8%
Education 2% 3%
Media 1% 1%
IT 5% 4%
Public Utilities 2% 2%
Sourcing / Procurement - 2%
Others 2% 1%
HKIHRM 2015 Topical Study – Survey on Talent Shortage in Hong Kong
Appendix : Profile of Participants (cont’d)
Sector
26
Company Size Round 1 Round 2
BASE 184 150
Below 100 32% 37%
100 - 499 30% 33%
500 or above 38% 29%
Company Management Round 1 Round 2
BASE 184 150
Local companies with head office in HK 40% 40%
Multi-nationals with overseas head office 35% 36%
Multi-nationals company with head office in HK 17% 14%
Mainland Chinese company with head office in China 3% 3%
Others 4% 7%