A growing global recruitment industry is finding the future of work is already here, finds the Recruitment & Employment Confederation’s Tom Hadley (right) at international confederation of private employment services Ciett’s 2016 World Employment Conference.

The United Nations of recruitment convened in New Delhi last week for the 2016 Ciett World Employment Conference, bringing together labour market experts and industry leaders from more than 35 countries. From the moment the India’s Minister of State for Employment Shri Bandaru Dattatreya led the 'lighting of the lamp' opening ceremony, it was clear that the event was an important step forward for industry recognition in India. 

The conference was a great platform for reviewing opportunities in other emerging markets, common threats and latest global trends.  

Ciett president Annemarie Muntz set the tone on one of the key themes of the conference, declaring that the "employment and recruitment industry is leading in a changing world of work". Here is a snapshot of some of the key messages:

1. The global industry is growing despite market pressure 

Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA) data shows that the global staffing market grew 5% in 2015, but it’s a mixed picture overall. US temp turnover was up 4% last year (and 11% up in perm) but the Canadian market has been heavily hit by oil prices and is down 6%. 

In South Africa, labour reforms seem intent on squeezing the life out of the temp market, while new equal treatment measures are coming into force in Japan and regulatory barriers remain in South America. 

There are huge growth opportunities in South-East Asia, with national recruitment federations starting to step up in countries such as Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia and Thailand.

2. Data is key to challenging misperceptions 

Ciett reported that the global recruitment industry provides 71.9m workers worldwide with access to the labour market. This is a huge achievement that we need to shout about. 

Our industry provides development opportunities as well as entry points for jobseekers. For example, 4.9m agency workers received training last year, with €535m (£408m) spent globally. 

The key is to make sure training is adapted for flexible staff – a topical debate in the UK in light of the apprenticeship levy. Data and positive stories must be central to our arguments about the value of the recruitment industry in order to addressing misperceptions, especially in emerging markets.  

3. Compliance and enforcement are paramount 

Shankar Aggarwal from the Indian Ministry of Labour argued "to create more jobs, we need to promote entrepreneurship and more flexible contracts". The need to work with national governments to develop balanced regulatory frameworks was a recurring theme. 

Linda Kromjong, secretary general of the International Organisation of Employers (IOE), underlined the need for effective enforcement that is in the best interests of compliant businesses, as well as workers. 

Panudda Boonpala, the International Labour Organization (ILO) director for India, recognised that "industry self-regulation has a key role to play", which underlines the importance of strong national federations. 

Ashok Reddy, managing director and co-founder of Teamlease, an Indian recruitment, HR outsourcing and staffing firm, made the point that in emerging markets like India, "the debate should not be about temporary versus permanent jobs, but about declared versus undeclared work". A dynamic recruitment market will, over time, pull more people out of unemployment and the black economy.

4. The future of work is here

The ILO’s Nicolas Niemtchinow urged delegates to “decide what kind of future of work we want and work together to shape it”. Chaitanya Sreenivas, HR director at computer hardware giant IBM (North India), argued that "most jobs will not disappear because of automation, but tasks will change", and Mark Keese, head of employment analysis at international economic organisation the OECD, underlined the need to get better at anticipating new skills needs and the role that recruitment professionals can play.

Sandeep Dhir, chief HR manager at Tata Steel, argued that in future employers “will need to focus more on attitude rather than skills in our hiring", and John Healy, vice president at recruitment giant Kelly Services, underlined the fact that recruiters will play “an increasingly important role in informing clients of changing jobs market dynamics". 

Elsewhere, SIA president Barry Asin flagged the “ongoing shift towards more use of managed services and total talent solutions" and the “move towards higher skilled roles".

Lots to reflect on from New Delhi and an overriding feeling of a new dawn and new opportunities in emerging markets. 

Over 1.6m people are currently working in the worldwide recruitment industry and we must continue to attract and develop great people in the sector to drive future growth and perception change. 

Rituparna Chakraborty, Indian Staffing Federation (ISF) president, set out the industry’s stall in India with an inspirational rallying call: “We want to take jobs to every nook and cranny of this huge country."

This is a message that resonates worldwide and across the whole of our industry.

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