World Economic Forum (WEF) findings revealed that Chilean multinational companies (MNC) have been the most successful among all other Latin American countries in attracting new talent as well as retaining it. 75% of HR executives in Chile stated that they “haven’t experienced any difficulty recruiting qualified staff”, corresponding with the highest rating of any other market Latin America. Chileans not only do an exceptionally good job recruiting talent but they are also sought after by multinationals in other Latin American (LATAM) countries. Chilean professionals are being recruited particularly for executive positions. In 2015, 27% of multinational executives in Peru were Chileans. Chile is regarded as an excellent source of specialized talent with its high quality educational institutions and numerous technical universities that focus on high-demand disciplines such as IT, engineering and health sciences. Chilean universities are some of the highest ranked in Latin America. [1]
The talent management survey conducted by Frontier Strategy Group showed that lack of language skills has been the main talent problem in the job market. Misalignment of salary expectations comes as the second biggest obstacle recruiters are facing in attaining qualified talent.
When it comes to attracting talent, Chilean HR executives seem to have no trouble filling positions for office support staff, technicians, engineers and IT specialists. However, there is an increasing demand for skilled sales force that has been difficult to satisfy. Sales representative, followed by executives and accountants are difficult to find. The reason for the rising demand for sales professionals as well as technical staff in Chile, which doubled in the past five years, is the increasing arrival of multinational companies into the country. Foreign direct investment (FDI) inflow into the country that has almost doubled from US$ 12.9 billion in 2009 to US$ 23.3 billion in 2014. [2] Chilean economy is growing steadily and so does income per capita, which improved by 6.3% from 2007 to 2013. This economic growth calls for a larger and stronger workforce that Chile strives to grow. An increasing number of Chilean MNCs (approximately 40% of all companies) are bringing in sales consultants to educate their younger and promising employees in sales and marketing. Some examples of popular sales consulting companies are Sales Consultants, DanLat Consulting, Trabajo and Vision Consulting. Also referred to as “capacity building”, developing capabilities of existing staff is the primary focus of Chilean companies and is hoped to fill the talent gap the country is currently experiencing. To compensate for talent market that is becoming more competitive in LATAM, Chilean companies are considering increasing salaries by 4.0% this year.
I am excited for our trip to Santiago and inquiring about the recruiting and capacity building efforts of the businesses we will be visiting.
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References
[1] LATAM’s Evolving Talent Market: Challenges And Best Practices In Latam’s Competitive Talent Market. Frontier Strategy Group. January 2016. Retrieved on February 21 2016, from: http://portal.frontierstrategygroup.com/Services/Research/Details.aspx?Id=18799
[2] Statistics: FDI Inflows in Chile (By Sector). Foreign Investment Promotion Agency. Retrieved on February 21 2016, from: http://www.ciechile.gob.cl/en/inversion-en-chile/estadisticas/