For many businesses, the focus recently has been on cost-cutting and layoffs. But we’re already looking ahead to the bounce back. This blog explores the power of understanding your business’ true skills and talent ecosystem, and how gaining this insight now will put you in a strong position. 

Sticking with tradition

Traditional steps for preparing for a bounce back, include: 

• Reviewing your business strategy.

• Assessing financial stability. 

• Strengthening customer relationships. 

• Adapting your marketing strategy to reflect changing market conditions and customer preferences. 

• Enhancing your online presence.

• Investing in employee development.

The game-changer

But a game-changing factor is knowing your business's skills and talent ecosystem. 

While there’s a growing awareness that things need to be done differently, many organisations still view themselves in a traditional, hierarchical structure. Senior management might know which job titles they have in their organisation, but little awareness of the actual skill sets of each of their people, or how this internal skills ecosystem is evolving over time. 

The Institute For Corporate Productivity conducted a study that showed that half of the companies surveyed have insufficient data about the current skills and capabilities of the workforce, ranking it as the number-one barrier to building workforce readiness. And 27% of survey participants believe LinkedIn knows more about their workforces than their organisations do. 

Thomas Stone, i4cp research analyst, said: “Our most recent survey shows that only 30% of organisations feel they have the necessary skills for the future. Yet, it’s hard to ascertain how they really know this because a mere 10% have an employee skills database or inventory today with profiles for all employees. When you combine all of this with an already strained labour market, it adds up to business leaders and HR executives looking to the future with desperation in their eyes.”

This lack of insight impacts reorganisation and hiring decisions; skills and training development; organisational ability, succession planning; retention; and aligning the workforce with strategic business goals.

A true understanding of your skills and talent ecosystem positions your business to navigate a bounce back successfully and capitalise on emerging possibilities by: 

• Identifying opportunities.

• Rapid resource allocation.

• Agility and flexibility. 

• Effective decision-making.

• Employee engagement and retention.

• Leveraging internal expertise. 

• Harnessing your attrition through an Alumni Network.
  

How the SAWiT Community Network can help

Through rich user profiles, Kalido uncovers your organisation's true skills. We can show you the skills you have around you today, and the skills you need to future-proof your business.

SAWiT uses innovative AI, powered by Kalido, to give an accurate, 360° view of your skills ecosystem, with two-way stacked-rank matching for roles and projects that filters and highlights the right people immediately. Employees can see AI-generated upskilling pathways and mentorship opportunities to help them develop and acquire skills for continuous career progression. 

Through SAWiT, you can track the real-time availability of your employees, and allocate projects in a way that ensures individuals can switch between projects with fluidity: you can be confident that you have the right people in the right roles, at the right time. AI-powered skill matching and real-time deployment maximises the ROI for every project and every talent within your organisation. 

And SAWiT can help you to extend your talent and skills ecosystem by quickly and easily building an effective Alumni Network. This creates a community of skilled people to draw on who have a history of working with your organisation. You can stay connected with Women in Tech alumni on your company's branded and private Alumni Network, and strengthen your employer brand with Alumni through content, news, learning incentives and jobs.