Attracting right talent, a biggest challenge for employers in 2014

NEW YORK, USA: The Execu|Search Group, a leading recruitment, and retained search firm, announced the release of its 2014 Regional Hiring Outlook whitepaper today, which revealed over a quarter of the hiring executives surveyed said they are experiencing a skills shortage.

The 2014 Regional Hiring Outlook whitepaper analyzes both employment and skill trends that will be prevalent in 2014, and aims to educate both employers and jobseekers on the factors that affect the strength of the workplace in the recovering U.S. economy.

The Execu|Search Group's projections for 2014 are unique in the fact that they are truly regional. "We started as a regional firm, and remain one to this day," said Edward Fleischman, CEO of The Execu|Search Group.

"The vast majority of our clients are located in the Northeast, and the trends that affect business in one region of the country may vary greatly compared to other areas. As a result, we felt it was valuable to educate our stakeholders about the regional hiring trends that will specifically affect them in the coming year," added Fleischman.

As Ed stated, "We felt it was important to inform our stakeholders of these findings, so they had a stronger understanding of what they may need to emphasize or improve upon to put their best foot forward."

Highlights of report include:

* Almost half of all respondents (45 per cent) answered ‘Attracting the Right Talent' as one of the biggest challenges in growing their business, while 26 per cent named a ‘skills shortage.'

* The skills shortage is especially prevalent in the Healthcare sector, where 43 per cent of respondents reported experiencing a skills shortage.

* Financial Services is another sector where the skills shortage is prevalent. With each new federal mandate, employers are seemingly needing a new set of specialized employees to keep their company compliant or drive the business forward

Another significant finding is that the executives who are making hiring decisions are now putting greater emphasis on "soft skills" in their hiring strategy.

The top four most in-demand "soft skills" include: problem solving and analytical thinking skills, the ability to act as a team player, initiative/drive, and effective communication skills.