Employers Must Engage Workforce at the Human Level to Gain Competitive Advantage in War for Talents

DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan. 29, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Manpower Inc. (NYSE: MAN), world leader in innovative workforce solutions, has warned that companies must tap into employees' full range of talents to succeed in the Human Age. Manpower kicked off the 2011 World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland with a panel discussion with CNBC, "Entering the Human Age — unleashing and leveraging human potential in the new reality." 

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Manpower announced before the discussion that the company has identified that the world is now entering the Human Age, where employers will be awakened to the power of humans as future drivers of economic growth. While previous areas were defined by the materials that transformed them — Stone, Iron and Bronze, then by ever-evolving technology — industry, space and information, in the Human Age access to key talent will become the key competitive differentiator. It will matter less if countries and companies can access capital and more if they can attract and retain the talent they need to win.

"Those individuals with the skills and the talent are actually changing the swagger in their step," said Jeffrey A. Joerres, Manpower Inc. Chairman and CEO. "When there is so much global competition, every person has to be very good. Employers need to work with their people to unleash their full spectrum of skills, engaging them on a human level and retaining those high-quality people to succeed in the new age."

Joerres was joined in the debate by moderator Frank Brown, Dean of INSEAD; Sharan Burrow, General Secretary of the International Confederation of Trade Unions; Don Tapscott, Chairman of Moxie Insight and best-selling author of Macrowikinomics; Kris Gopalakrishnan, CEO and Managing Director of Infosys, Jim Quigley, CEO of Deloitte, and Dan Brutto, President of UPS International.

Quigley echoed Joerres' sentiment, saying companies need to provide employees with a working environment where they can excel. "We the organization are responsible for you to perform at your very best," he said.

With the Human Age accentuated by demographic shifts such as aging workforces, worsening talent mismatches, the collaborative power of fast-evolving technologies and the need for companies to do more with less, discussion panelists agreed that having an adequate talent pipeline is as challenging as it is critical. It's about employers looking for specificity of skills and the need for employers to adopt a "one-size-fits-one" approach to employee engagement on a human level.

"If you're turning over the people in your company on a rapid basis you're not going to be successful in the market place," said Brutto.

The panel also focused on the problem of long-term unemployment, which is adding to the imbalance between the talent needed and the talent available because skills deteriorate when a person is out of work for an extended period of time. Collaboration is the key to tackling this problem, but individuals must ensure they commit to lifelong learning to get ahead in the Human Age.

"It's the biggest challenge ever to put unemployed people back to work," said Burrow. "We've got to invest in jobs and investment in jobs needs to be blended with investment in skills."

Brown added that so-called "industry migrants" – workers who are moving to a different industry – are one key to solving the skills mismatch but they need adequate transition support from employers. "This is about transitioning from one industry to another," he said.

Tapscott said that protectionist attitudes to immigration would exacerbate the talent mismatch because it will make it difficult for individuals with the required skills to relocate to where they are needed. He also added that more entrepreneurs need be assisted to create more jobs. "We should be encouraging entrepreneurship because most 80 percent of new jobs come from companies that are five years old," he said.

Gopalakrishnan said the velocity of change in the Human Age also poses massive challenges for the individual. "The nature of work and the areas in which work is being done are changing. Today, a person will probably change jobs five or six times. If an employee doesn't have the skills, they're at a disadvantage."

"The topics we've discussed are complicated and we're in the middle of the transition," said Joerres. "We are entering the Human Age."

Manpower Inc. is proud to be a strategic partner of the World Economic Forum 2011 Annual Meeting. Jeff Joerres, Manpower Inc. Chairman and CEO; David Arkless, Manpower Inc. President of Corporate and Government Affairs; Francoise Gri, Manpower Inc. President of Southern Europe; and Jonas Prising, Manpower Inc. President of the Americas, are all participating in high-profile panels at this year's annual forum. Manpower partners with WEF on several initiatives, and in 2010, Joerres co-chaired the World Economic Forum on Europe meeting, Arkless is Chair of the Global Agenda Council on Skills & Talent Mobility. For more information about Manpower's presence at the World economic Forum 2011 Annual Meeting, go to: www.manpower.com/press/wef2011.cfm. Joerres will also be sharing regular insight and expertise via Twitter on events in Davos and transformational implications for the world of work. Follow Joerres' tweets at www.twitter.com/manpowerceo.

Enter the Human Age at: www.manpower.com/humanage.

About Manpower Inc.

Manpower Inc. (NYSE: MAN), world leader in innovative workforce solutions; creates and delivers services that enable its clients to win in the changing world of work. With over 62 years' experience, Manpower offers employers a range of solutions and services for the entire employment and business cycle including permanent, temporary and contract recruitment; employee assessment and selection; training; outplacement; outsourcing and consulting. Manpower's worldwide network of 4,000 offices in 82 countries and territories enables the company to meet the needs of its 400,000 clients per year, including small and medium size enterprises in all industry sectors, as well as the world's largest multinational corporations. The focus of Manpower's work is on raising productivity through improved quality, efficiency and cost-reduction across their total workforce, enabling clients to concentrate on their core business activities. Manpower Inc. operates under five brands: Manpower, Manpower Professional, Elan, Jefferson Wells and Right Management. More information on Manpower Inc. is available at www.manpower.com.

SOURCE Manpower Inc.