Difficulties For Organisations Seeking Managers

New Report Highlights Increasing Difficulties For Organisations Seeking Managers

New company to target New Zealand's changing management talent pool

A report released today by the New Zealand Institute of Economic Research (NZIER) reveals that global and local demographic and economic changes are making it extremely difficult for New Zealand employers to find the right managerial personnel.

Whereas management candidates previously came from an easily identified talent pool, the trends and market forces outlined in the report point to a multi-dimensional management employment market place.

The report was released at the launch of a new nation-wide recruitment consultancy. Stratum, part of the Manpower group of companies, has been created specifically to meet the managerial recruitment needs of New Zealand organisations.

"The business case for Stratum is compelling. The evolving New Zealand market is demanding customer intimate, customised management and executive solutions. The company that best answers that demand will dominate a high value, repeat business orientated segment," said Dave Stewart, General Manager, Stratum Consulting New Zealand.

"The report re-enforces our view that there is not one homogeneous market for management executives in New Zealand. In fact for a variety of reasons that the report explains, the executive employment market is becoming increasingly fragmented. As a consequence the search for the right managerial personnel is becoming increasingly harder for New Zealand organizations," added Mr Stewart.

Symptoms of the new management employment landscape, highlighted in the report, include the fact that the 3.2% annual increase of undergraduate commerce tertiary qualifications is outstripped by growth in social science, IT and 'softer' humanities degrees. The report discusses the knock-on effect of this and other educational trends, as well as factors such as talent migration and immigration on the executive employment landscape.

Stratum has been launched by Manpower, the largest global provider of workforce solutions, and a leader in the Australasian market place. Carole Virtue, Vice President, Operations, Manpower Australasia, said of the launch:

"Being born out of the Manpower stable means that Stratum is necessarily focussed on market leadership in the Australasian staffing and recruitment industry and being recognised for excellence in performance and empowered people.

"Manpower delivers best-of-breed technology and volume based solutions to a variety market sectors, whereas Stratum's success will lie in centering its business on individualised customer needs. The NZIER report points to a trend towards shorter employment attachments, and changing structure of careers. This means New Zealand firms need to rethink how they can best tap into an internationally mobile pool of highly skilled workers. With focussed access to global and local talent, Stratum is in an unrivalled position to help them do exactly that," added Ms Virtue.

A clear conclusion of the report is that competition for skills is going to become more intense, and New Zealand firms will have to identify ways of finding and keeping executive talent in that context. The report points to a need for New Zealand companies to look at talent pools differently and to recognise the changes that are taking place within the market place. This will be an imperative if they are to have the right people in place to achieve their business objectives.

In keeping with its customer-focussed strategy, Stratum is truly nationwide, with 40 staff in offices in Wellington, Christchurch, Auckland and Manukau, representing the size and diversity of the New Zealand market.

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