The Digital Labour Market

In this presentation and discussion in March 2000, James Plummer, Director of Prospect, discussed the new media labour market.

James began his presentation by outlining some of the important shifts in the labour market over the last twenty-five years as a result of technological innovations. He recalled, for instance, the first information technology wave, the early mainframe culture in which large companies sought highly specific technicians, who had acquired expertise in inaccessible and technically difficult programming languages, such as COBAL or FORTRAN, that remained relevant and in demand for a long period of time.

The mainframe era was followed by successive waves of technological innovation and new markets, with the development of minicomputers, PCs, multimedia, the internet and new communication technologies. James considered the present phase to be more intense and fast moving than any before it, with an unprecedented disparity between the strength of the demand for talent, and the scarcity of supply.

New Types of Worker

The current extreme dynamics of supply and demand in the new media labour market have been accompanied by social, cultural and macro economic trends that have had a significant impact on people�s attitudes towards work. The traditional practice of serving a single company for a long period of time, and being moulded and looked after by them in return, is less and less common. Today, more and more people see themselves as portfolio workers, ready to take career risks, to switch easily between full-time and part-time jobs or work on a number of projects concurrently.

Along with this there are a different set of attitudes emerging towards both career and lifestyle choices. People are switching jobs in order to develop new skills and learning experiences, rather than for the old reasons that they don�t like a particular employer or can earn more elsewhere. They are travelling more, they want to take periods of time off or work abroad, and they look to companies to meet their needs rather than worrying about meeting the demands of the employer.

New Types of Hirers

There have also been important changes in the structure and behaviour of businesses and the skills that they demand. New forms of business have emerged, such as incubators, with new models and skills requirements. The new media market has witnessed an aggregating of talent, as companies seek to provide technology, design and strategic services for clients. This has meant that there is enormous demand for multi-skilled individuals, people who are technologically competent, while at the same time able to address creative and strategic problems. Businesses have had to move much faster to compete in the market, to learn and assimilate new production processes, with the result that many programming languages and packages now have a much shorter life span, with highly volatile demand levels.

Strategies for Attracting and Retaining Talent

James outlined a range of strategies that companies can pursue in response to these changes. A common policy is to make use of freelancers, consultants and contract workers, bringing in specifically skilled people to work on a particular project. This can be a cost effective way of bringing in the expertise you need on a flexible basis, although it means of course that skills and talent are not retained inside the company. Similarly, there is a growing trend to outsource work, particularly abroad where there are relatively cheap sources of IT skills in areas such as Eastern Europe and India.

With all outsourcing, there is the difficulty in managing and controlling the quality of your suppliers. Hence, one strategy that new media companies are increasingly following is to enter creative partnerships, mergers or take-overs with other businesses to gain access to the talent they need. This has become more feasible because equity valuations have risen so dramatically in recent years, providing businesses with high-value stock that they can use to leverage business acquisitions.

James warned that retaining talent is now an extremely challenging process, and those working in Human Resources have got to work hard if they want to keep talented new media teams together. There is now a great deal of effort spent on creating a comfortable and enjoyable working environment, since many new media professionals demand relaxed office conditions and flexible conditions that suit their lifestyles. It may, for instance, be a good idea to give staff the opportunity of working at home for at least some of the week.

Finally, James advised companies to always be prepared to let someone go, provided they can retain an interest. In the flexible new media market, talented individuals move easily backwards and forwards between businesses. If someone wants to leave, it may be a better strategy to let them go, but try to make sure that they go to a friendly collaborator rather than a direct competitor.