Financial view on 2023 labour market

Pavol Nagy CEE Finance Director, Cpl & Covalen pavol.nagy@cpl.ie

In 2023 global economic activity will experience a broad - based and sharper - than expected - slowdown in the CEE region, with in ation higher than seen in several decades. The economic crisis that started in 2022 - re ected in the rising cost of living, tightening nancial conditions in most regions, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and the lingering COVID-19 pandemic - all weigh heavily on the outlook for the whole of 2023.

Global growth is forecasted to slow from 6.0 percent in 2021 to 3.2 percent in 2022 and 2.7

percent in 2023. It will cause businesses will struggle nancially for some time.

Quality instead of quantity

Businesses today must implement cost-e ective hiring strategies. Leaders will have to gure out how their processes must change and what skills they need. Solving this factor right quickly is critical to surviving post-pandemic recruitment. It is very important to

find quality in recruitment processes instead of quantity. Here, paraxially, companies should focus on outsourcing services - to entrust recruitment into the hands of professionals who will help us in

the well-needed talents for the organization. Thanks to this, they will avoid the costs of unsuccessful recruitment processes and maintaining additional jobs within the organization.

The recruitment battle for the greatest talent is already intense and in 2023 it is likely to escalate as investment into senior, experienced employees could show crucial to improve company’s performance within current tough nancial times. Looking at the current situation on labour market companies must realize that their

best investment is investing into overall employee’s

satisfaction. All this to limit employee turnover and keep talents within the organization for as long as possible.

Good planning is key in 2023

All departments in company should work in

synergy and forecast budget realistically. Important to understand incoming projects, take into consideration all risk factors, plan into turnover forecast. If we plan well, at least 90% of projects we

should provide our organization with relative financial stability in these uncertain times.

In current market situation every mistake - such as - oversta ng, cash- ow issue, unnecessary spending, attrition of key employees - can be crucial in company's performance. In 2023 it will be very important for each company to fully prepare for hiring in the future. It is a

must to have a proper recruitment plan followed by lining up the best talent to fill future roles.

In hard economic times there are two primary

reasons why businesses fail: lack of proper planning and problems with leadership.

Nowadays every company needs to concentrate on 4 main areas:

1. Stick to a Budget

An important step to consider when trying to get ahead nancially is budgeting. To have realistic budget is very important but to stick with it is something very crucial in these uncertain times. You will never get ahead if you spend more than you earn. Little cost-cutting e ort in number of areas can result in saving. And always to have ‘’Plan B’’ is huge advantage, in case the things are not going as we planned.

2. Invest wisely and spread your business focus

Key here is to have more than 1 turnover ow. It is highly risky to be depended on one customer or one speci c area of income. Diversify your customer base to eliminate risk. Keep doing your best for the top clients, but vital is to explore ideas for broadening customer base, which could be also in di erent sectors of your main business. All of this must be aligned with e ective credit control in order to avoid cash- ow issues.

3. Expand your offerings

Expand your services o ers. Can you build on your existing expertise to o er new products or services? If so, this is another tack for engaging new customers, possibly including those from new markets, and for expanding your relationships with existing clients. You might achieve this on your own or by working in partnership with another business. Look for opportunity in any unmet needs in the market.

4. Stable staff in unstable times

Do not waste time on unsuccessful recruitment of employees. It is much cheaper to trust specialists who will help recruit the best talents for your company as Cpl. Thanks to this, you will avoid the costs of unsuccessful recruitment processes. Maintaining permanent sta , with the lowest possible employee turnover, will not only ensure savings but also the stability of the company's operation.