On May 26-27, the 49th Ciett World Employment Conference was developed in New Delhi, India, organized by Ciett and the Indian Staffing Federation (ISF). Over 300 participants, including industry experts, policymakers, user companies, workers, members of internationals organizations and partners, attended coming from 35 countries attended the conference.

The opening speech, delivered by Annemarie Muntz, Ciett President, announced several of the key issues to be addressed during the event.

Muntz pointed out the reasons to organize the event in India, as it is becoming one of the most important contributors to global employment. India has a large pool of young and skilled talent (around 270 million people). This represents a huge opportunity for global talent and for the employment and recruitment industry. However, the country faces two major challenges: a complex and bureaucratic regulatory framework and an elevated labour informality rate (close to 92%).

The theme of this year’s conference was “the employment and recruitment industry in the new era of employment”, a topic strongly discussed nowadays, at every institutional and political level.

Muntz stated that Ciett is at the forefront of the discussion. The organization is playing a leading role in shaping it, particularly considering that Ciett members experience on a daily basis breathing the changes in the labour market and their work is work.

Ciett’s president also referred to the fact that the global workforce is increasingly mobile and accessible thanks to technology: online platforms connect workers and companies across the world. Technological advancements are fast redefining the skills – hard and soft – that will be needed in the near future.

Another trends shaping the world of work is demographic shifts and new attitudes towards work.
“The 9 to 5 and one job for life mentality are characteristics of the Industrial revolution 2.0….of the last century not of the 3.0 revolution we are in”, said Muntz.

Though it is rather difficult to predict the future of work, labour markets will certainly become more complex, dynamic and diversified. Workforce will be less standard, and there shall be mix of different types and combinations of workers and work relationships operating in the same workspace. There will be more on demand, just in time, work. And due to the loss of routine jobs, polarisation of labour will happen. A topic that needs to be addressed jointly by all stakeholders, governments, unions, employers.

Ciett’s president highlighted the key role that the recruitment and employment industry plays in this dynamic and complex scenery. “Labour market intermediaries will ideally be the go-to partners for workers and business’ alike to navigate this complexity, to develop the right skills, find the right (total talent) workforce solutions to enable them to succeed and grow.”

The recruitment industry is also changing, moving towards a new digital distribution model. Branches are shifting from adminisrative take-in offices to modern, collaborative, sharing, working, training centres, and consultants are becoming trusted career advisors. Technology has change the way talent is sourced, and recruitment firms have included the cloud and social media to their databases and job boards.

One of the main features of the future of work is the gig economy. Disruptive companies, such as “Upwork”, “Taskrabbit” and “Gigwalk”, have become part of the recruitment and employment industry, impacting the future world of work intermediation.

According to Muntz, these sorts of changes have triggered Ciett leadership to reflect on what the industry stands for and what its role is for the present and for the future. The services represented have extended, including agency work, permanent recruitment, recruitment process outsourcing and managed service providers and outplacement. Furthermore, during the WEC 2016, Ciett General Assembly agreed with the proposal for the new branding, which will come into effect in 2017.

Clearly, the employment and recruitment industry will continue to lead the way in the changing and dynamic labour world. And Ciett is committed to promote and enhance the sectors’ leadership by adapting and evolving to represent the expanding workforce solutions environment.

To read the summary report on the event, click here.