Recruiting agency ManpowerGroup’s thirteenth edition of its yearly ‘Talent Shortage Survey’ has found that skilled trades, technicians and sales and marketing positions top the charts as the top three most difficult positions to fill in South Africa, and globally.

According to the 2019 report, global talent shortages average 54%, while in South Africa it is 34%.

Large enterprises report a significant 42% shortage in talent and desired skills, followed by 40% for medium-sized organisations, 31% for small businesses and 22% for microenterprises.

ManpowerGroup South Africa MD Lyndy van den Barselaar says South Africa is “ahead of the game” compared with the global average.

South Africa’s 34% shortage has held steady since the 2016 survey, although the makeup of shortages has shifted somewhat.

South Africa also struggles to fill positions in accounting and finance, management, professionals, information technology (IT), driving and logistics, engineering and healthcare.

The report further indicated that global results reflect that skilled trades are most in demand, followed by sales and marketing, technicians and engineering.

Healthcare has entered the global top ten for the first time, in tenth position, while automation has led to office administration, contact centre employees, project managers, legal professionals and researchers dropping off the top ten.

Reinforcing the message that hands-on skills are leading the pack in terms of shortages, driving and logistics is at fifth place globally, manufacturing at eighth, and construction at ninth. IT professionals are at position six on the global shortage list, followed by accounting and finance professionals in seventh place.

“South Africa corresponds with the global results that skilled trades, technicians, and sales and marketing positions are the most difficult to fill.”

This initially reads as areas of opportunity for job seekers; however, with a gloomy economy outlook expected for this year, and with the latest ManpowerGroup Employment Outlook Survey for quarter one of 2020 indicating that very few employers are looking to increase their payroll, competition for the jobs that are available will be fierce, Van den Barselaar notes.

Job seekers are encouraged to extend their professional skill sets to give themselves “the necessary advantage”, she adds.