The workplace is undergoing tremendous change as the result of new technology, shifting societal attitudes and new generations of workers with different needs and ideas.

This is according to Linda Trim, director at workplace design specialists Giant Leap, who notes that the pace of change in the workplaces is picking up.

Many countries including the US, China, Japan, Italy and South Africa will face talent shortages, said Trim.

She added that skills predicted to be in-demand include management, legal, sales and marketing, operations as well as IT proficiency.

“This talent shortage will challenge organisations to find and keep the best people.

“They will need to engage employees with workplaces that support their wants and needs. Creating vibrant offices is one tactic to recruit and retain talent. Providing flexibility and choices for where, when and how work happens is also critical for attracting the best and brightest people,” Trim said.

The Enterprise Observatory of South Africa (EOSA) also recently highlighted some alarming findings on the talent shortage in the Department of Home Affairs’ 2017 white paper on emigration.

It noted that for every professional immigrating to South Africa – eight professionals are emigrating, the researchers found, and while a large number of white professionals were making the jump, in recent years, the annual number of black professionals leaving South Africa exceeds the tally of professional white emigrants.

The researchers found that between 1989 and 2003, over 120,000 of the 520,000 mainly white emigrants had professional qualifications (one in four) and SA lost 7% of its total stock of professionals.

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