Since the 1990s, there have been major changes in the Finnish labor market, affecting, among other things, the way companies deal with staff in the present day. The importance of recruitment to businesses has grown even greater, for example, because of changes in organizations, economic growth and technological advances. The availability of labor and the success of recruitments have also become more difficult with a smaller number of talent in the market but a larger number of companies competing for them. Success in recruitments is absolutely vital to businesses because it takes time and money to find the right employee, and having the right person can be of huge benefit to the company. It is understood that it is necessary for an overall strategy to understand the importance of recruitment as an integral part of the business, not just a resource-consuming compulsion from which to save if necessary. Without functional recruitment and staff management, the company can drift into problems in an attempt to meet the demands of the present and future. Successful recruitments and skillful staff management have tangible benefits for the company as far as competitive advantage is concerned.

In Finland, one of the biggest challenges in the labor market is created by the baby boom generation, more specifically their retirement. The term ‘baby boom generation’ refers to those born between 1945 and 1950 who are now putting their working life behind them and entering retirement. After the baby boom generation, there have not been as many children born in Finland, which causes the fact that now that it is needed, there are not enough younger labor to fill the positions of retired talent. So demand and supply between jobs and talent does not meet in the market. This, on the other hand, has forced a prolongation of careers, allowing old hands at their field of work to stay in the workforce longer than some of them would necessarily like.

Given the declining endemic labor force and the growing trend in immigration, it’s easy to solve the equation “Where do we get additional labor when large age classes mass retirement?” The majority of immigrants are of age and fit to work. Many people with foreign countries have a degree acquired prior to moving to Finland or studies that could be better utilized in employment if, in addition to traditional integration activities, there were, for example, a work-related internship period, during which an immigrant could receive the additional training or practical skills or tips that would make the transition to employment easier — in this way immigrant employment could also be brought to an increase. The internship would also make it easier to adapt to the company’s work culture. Burgal Oy recognizes this opportunity and offers high-quality courses and seminars to facilitate the integration of immigrants into Finnish labor.

On the other hand, a change in employee personal values also affects how motivated people are to work. Work has lost its status as the self-worth of life, which means that other benefits and profits are also expected from work, than pay alone. Among other things, flexibility, meaningfulness and mental reward of work, as well as good opportunities for development in a career are values which are considered to have gained more weight in recent times. New generations will also take the values of the employer organization more closely into account when choosing jobs. Personal values and employer values are desired to be in harmony with each other. Since pay for work and other allowances are no longer a priority for today’s jobseekers, the importance of the company’s employer image has become more pronounced. So it would be important for companies to focus on the image of them as an employer, both to the company’s own employees and outwardly, prospective future employees.

The employer brand image is part of the company’s brand. The employer image of a company has a big impact on the type of people who become interested in the company as a potential employer. As stated, the employer picture is really significant from a recruitment perspective. In terms of successful recruitments, it would be good to be aware not only of their own needs and objectives, but of what kind of staff are required, and what kind of employer image appeals to those people so that recruitment can reach just the right kind of applicants.

In the present day, companies should think more and more carefully about their staffing solutions and, if necessary, turn to human resources professionals such as Burgal. We want to help you find the perfect solutions for your business so that your activities can continue as strongly as ever and even stronger, despite changes in the business environment. At Burgal, we develop the best solutions for working life needs so that your business can be more successful, without the extra waste of resources.