The megatrend convergence has caused changes in an unprecedented scale and disruption in future employability. Technologies evolution, diversity, resurgent nationalism, and changing demographics are an integral part of megatrends which lead to theatrical consequence on how people are managed. Interestingly, the fundamental transformation post pandemic had posed challenges and impact on the legitimacy of the existing global order and lead to decline trust in institutions, broader stakeholders, and uncertainty in organization objectives. In this context, the scale of empowerment in the globalized organization were under threat from the populist narrative, which challenging the assumption on the source of value creation, talent development, and talent mobility.
On the other hand, as immigration regulatory changes had unruly the dynamic of talent accessibility from different nations, it is necessary for management teams to understand these shifting landscapes of employability in the modern workforce. Among aspects to be taken considerations includes agile management, strategic human capital, global flexible working arrangements and employee health and safety, which became the broad backdrop of changes to be reviewed.
Employability of workforce in the past was highly determined by the candidate's passion, interest, and determination to venture into the profession. The situation changed after the COVID-19 crisis as there is paradigm shift of the perceptions and expectations among the younger generation of employees in the workforce. In ensuring sustainable of human capital, we need to identify the underlying perceptions and expectations of the targeted group of employees by determining inter-disciplinary insight, using multiple pathways to analyse behavioural changes, challenging present assumptions, and converting motivation into practices.
Specifically, the trajectory pattern of employability in the hospitality industry was a straightforward flow in the past whereby employee was usually attracted by the value, benefits and remuneration packages offered by the organization. Typically, employees will be loyal to the company if they are satisfied and comfortable with the organization. However, labour shortages remain a critical issues of hospitality industry (especially room division housekeeping and banquet services of hotel segment) and intensified in recent years. Since technology advancement is the spotlight in many industries, it is timely for the hospitality industry to brainstorm and re-look into how technology can be leveraged in addressing labour shortage in the industry.
As known, online food ordering & delivery, online transportation services (taxi on-demand), and online retails are among the solid evidence on how technology can be deployed in optimizing business operations and revenue for service industries. In line with that, the development of technology application for matching of job supply - demand can be the future employability solutions in fulfilling both employer job's vacancies and employee job's demand in a more dynamic way.
The mechanism of the online application "hospitality work on demand" will require an integration between technology, academic and hospitality industry. Deeper understanding of the competencies, working habits and expectation of younger generation will contribute to the determination of number of work supplies in meeting the possible demand. Besides, basic standing operating procedures (SOP) of hospitality industry, fundamental skills and outcome expectancy should be set in place in order to ensure quality service, productivity and eminence outcomes. All these data need to be standardized as to ensure that it can be used in similar hospitality segments/divisions that wish to participate in the jobs on demand applications.
The on-demand job application should allow employer to utilise this technology to promote the job availability at any time when they have job supply and employee will have the flexibility to accept the job at their convenience. The application concept is different from job portal (with conventional job postings) whereby it matches the supply and demand of job provider and job seekers. Instead of looking and searching for talent, the application will allow candidate to accept willingly for job offer together with remuneration and rewards. This application will suit the younger generation which are looking for a more flexible work schedule and commitments.
On top of that, the inclusion of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies in the on-job demand application will help to match job supply and job demand between employer and employee seamlessly. For instance, classification of employability using AI technology shall provide insights on the characteristics, qualities, skills and knowledge that constitute the employability in between job supply and job demand in unprecedented speed. As such, it will be a powerful tool in addressing labour shortage, especially during peak seasons.
Progressively, the use of AI will be emancipating the threat on employment of skilled workers for hospitality industry. Besides, with on-going technological innovations, it will re-define the nature and work objectives in more simplify yet satisfy manner. In a nutshell, future employability in hospitality industry should accentuated on emerging technology interventions that will likely focus on the remote working, mapping the work supply and demand on innovative capacity, smart technology and utilising employee influencers on job demand and organizational branding.