TALENT-BASED LOCATION STRATEGIES Today’s highly competitive market for technical talent is leading many companies to consider entering lesser-known geographies where they can find more accessible pools of high-quality and cost-effective talent in a lower-risk hiring environment.
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s the U.S. economy continues its recovery from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, employers are encountering an increasingly difficult talent landscape fraught with challenges related to the attraction and retention of the talent upon which their business relies. This is particularly true for the most advanced technical job roles. Amid this environment, companies are relying on their site selection consultants to develop talent-
based location strategies that help ameliorate these challenges. Utilizing market data in more creative ways can help companies gain competitive advantage by identifying new pools of accessible technical talent. The current situation in the U.S. has been coined the “Great Resignation” as turnover rates are spiking for all positions across different industries and skill sets. The tightening of the labor supply coupled with increased demand for new hiring across the economy is creating serious challenges for companies as they look to increase headcount or at least replace employees lost to attrition. Oversaturated labor market conditions for tech talent are no longer found only in the most established tech hubs (e.g., Bay Area, Seattle, New York, etc.) but most of the second-tier talent markets (e.g., Atlanta, Austin, Denver, etc.) are also finding that the demand for tech talent is outpacing supply as larger companies dramatically increase their hiring in these once emerging geographies. However, the pandemic’s effect of loosening the hold of geography on companies’ talent acquisition is also creating new opportunities for employers to test and tap into lesser-known pools of quality, cost-effective talent in less competitive environments. The top questions we’re currently receiving from our tech clients (or companies in other industry verticals hiring technical talent) reflect this current situation.
By C hris Volney, Senior Director, CBRE Labor Analytics 62 • WORKFORCE
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