Co-branded logo Decoding Global Talent 2018Co-Branded WHATReport 366,000 WORKFORCE Cover RESPONDENTS IN 197 COUNTRIES TELLTitle US ABOUT JOB PREFERENCES ANDCO-BRANDED MOBILITY REPORT SUBTITLE The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) is a global management consulting firm and the world’s leading advisor on business strategy. We partner with clients from the private, public, and not-for- profit sectors in all regions to identify their highest-value opportunities, address their most critical challenges, and transform their enterprises. Our customized approach combines deep insight into the dynamics of companies and markets with close collaboration at all levels of the client organization. This ensures that our clients achieve sustainable competitive advantage, build more capable organizations, and secure lasting results. Founded in 1963, BCG is a private company with offices in more than 90 cities in 50 countries. For more information, please visit bcg.com. The Network is a global alliance of more than 50 leading recruitment websites, committed to finding the best talent in over 130 countries. Founded in 2002, The Network has become the global leader in online recruitment, serving more than 2,000 global corporations. We offer these corporations a single point of contact in their home countries, and allow them to work in a single currency and with a single contract—while giving them access to a global workforce. The recruitment websites in The Network attract almost 200 million unique visitors each month. For more information, please visit www.the-network.com. DECODING GLOBAL TALENT 2018 WHAT 366,000 WORKFORCE RESPONDENTS IN 197 COUNTRIES TELL US ABOUT JOB PREFERENCES AND MOBILITY RAINER STRACK MIKE BOOKER ORSOLYA KOVACS-ONDREJKOVIC PIERRE ANTEBI DAVID WELCH This is the first in a series of articles about workforce changes and skills of the future. June 2018 | The Boston Consulting Group • The Network CONTENTS 3 The Workforce Challenge 5 A Decline in the Desire to Work Abroad 8 The Appeal of Specific Foreign Destinations 14 The Search for a Good Cultural Fit 16 How Companies and Governments Can Adapt 20 Advice for Individuals 22 For Further Reading 23 Note to the Reader 2 Decoding Global Talent THE WORKFORCE CHALLENGE sk leaders at big companies what With all of this in mind, The Boston Con- Aworries them, and one of the first things sulting Group and the online international they’ll mention is the challenge of managing a recruitment company The Network have workforce at a time of rapid change. Jobs joined together to create one of the largest being transformed by automation and surveys ever of labor trends and work prefer- artificial intelligence is one big concern—even ences—366,000 people in 197 countries. (See if the full effects are still a few years off. Even Exhibit 1 to understand the survey scope and now, with automation just starting, many participants’ backgrounds.) positions require new digital capabilities or deep technical expertise. They’re hard to fill. In taking this comprehensive approach—and by comparing our findings with those of our And then there’s the impact of demographics. previous study in 2014—we set out to under- Older employees are retiring, and younger re- stand what has changed about people’s job placements don’t have equivalent knowledge. preferences and attitudes toward mobility. If younger people want to take on these lega- cy jobs—a question in the first place—it’s This year, we added questions about only on certain terms. Younger candidates megatrends in the world of work, about the bring their own workplace expectations. global workforce’s willingness to learn new skills, about their interest in working in new As they wrestle with these challenges—and ways, and about their readiness to meet the the resulting talent imbalances—corporate challenges of a digital era. A simultaneous leaders and economic policymakers should survey of 6,000 recruiters gave us the be taking a closer look at where people want employer perspective. (See the appendix, to work, what they want in a job, and where “Survey Methodology.”) to find needed skills. Just as companies and countries study everything from the capital Understanding global workforce attitudes markets to the weather, they must now try to is critical for both companies and countries. get a handle on the future of the workforce. Those that manage it will gain flexibility in This includes finding foreign candidates at a addressing their future challenges and will time when immigration policy is undergoing have the best shot at sustaining economic change in many countries. growth. The Boston Consulting Group • The Network 3 EXHIBIT 1 A Survey of 366,139 Workforce Respondents in 197 Countries Americas Middle East and Africa Europe Asia-Pacific 10, 000 or more Germany Romania Turkey China respondents Hungary Russia Ukraine Indonesia 5,000–9,999 Argentina Ecuador Morocco Belarus Kazakhstan UK respondents Canada US France Switzerland 1,000–4,999 Brazil Honduras Peru Algeria Israel Albania Estonia Netherlands India Singapore respondents Costa Rica Jamaica Trinidad Angola Ivory Coast Austria Greece Poland Malaysia Thailand and Tobago El Salvador Nicaragua Iran South Africa Belgium Ireland Portugal Myanmar Vietnam Guatemala Panama Croatia Italy Serbia Philippines Cyprus Latvia Slovakia Denmark Lithuania Spain 100–999 Barbados Mexico Benin Kenya Tunisia Bosnia and Finland Slovenia Afghanistan Pakistan Herzegovina respondents Colombia Venezuela Cameroon Nigeria United Arab Kyrgyzstan Sweden Australia South Korea Emirates Bulgaria Dominican Egypt Qatar Luxembourg Uzbekistan Japan Republic Czech Nepal Ghana Saudi Arabia Republic Norway Less than 100 Other Americas Other Middle East and Africa Other Europe Other Asia and Pacific respondents Age distribution None/other Doctorate or 366,139 1% equivalent Workforce respondents Secondary 2% qualifications 17% Master’s degree or postgraduate qualification 29% 52% 47% High school diploma or equivalent 2% Education 13% Bachelor’s degree 10 20 30 40 50 60 38% Male Prefer not Female to say Industry Position 50% 16% 8% 7% 5% 23% 1% 4% 11% 6% 20% 25% 6% 18% Consumer Financial Health Hospitality Industrial Legal Business Technology Social/public Other Owner Middle Lower No manage- institutions care and service goods sector or senior manage- manage- ment manage- ment ment responsibilities ment Company size Recruit 29% abroad 6,180 Recruit Recruiter respondents 71% domestically 1–50 51–500 501–3000 3,001+ 37% 34% 15% 15% Source: 2018 BCG/The Network proprietary web survey and analysis. Note: Percentages may not total 100 because of rounding. 4 Decoding Global Talent A DECLINE IN THE DESIRE TO WORK ABROAD here is no denying the impact that work abroad is up significantly since 2014. Ttightening trade and immigration pol- Willingness to work abroad has also in- icies are having on the US’s reputation as creased substantially in the US and UK, the a work destination and that Brexit is having two countries whose political shifts have got- on the UK’s. The changes brought about by ten the most attention, and is above 70% in heightened nationalism show up in the sur- much of Africa. vey results—sometimes subtly, sometimes less so. Other factors, too, have affected the Overall, however, willingness to relocate for global map of mobility. Notable among these work has declined. Of the 50 most populous are Europe’s refugee crisis, Asia’s continuing countries in the survey, only 7 show a signifi- rise, and Eastern Europe’s economic cantly greater interest in mobility now versus revitalization. 2014, as reflected by the percentage of their population willing to emigrate. Twelve of the The net result is that overall willingness to 50 show a significant decrease in mobility. emigrate has dipped. Fifty-seven percent of (For purposes of analysis, we treated an in- all respondents now say they would move to crease or decrease of 10 percentage points as another country for work. While that is still a significant.) sizable number, it is 7 percentage points low- er than when we asked the same question in Among the countries whose workforce is sig- 2014. Then, the “would relocate” response nificantly less inclined to consider a foreign was 64%. work assign- ment now is It could be that the world is becoming less China. Eric Li, mobile. Or it could be that work itself is be- an IT executive Fifty-seven coming more global, making it unnecessary in Shanghai who for people to uproot their lives to find satisfy- participated in “percent of ing, well-paying jobs. this year’s sur- vey, says that Chi- people would Mobility is not lower everywhere, of course. na has become an More than 90% of Indians and 70% of Brazil- innovator in many work abroad, ians now say they would be willing to move areas. That has to another country for the right job. (See Ex- made it unneces- a drop from hibit 2.) Those are two of the world’s most sary for Chinese to populous nations; in both, willingness to move abroad to 2014. The Boston Consulting Group • The Network 5 EXHIBIT 2 Willingness to Work Abroad, by Country Percentage of respondents who are already working abroad or are willing to move abroad for work Afghanistan Canada Angola Costa Rica Albania Argentina Cyprus Australia Austria Czech Barbados Republic Bosnia and Belarus Ecuador Herzegovina Belgium Finland Brazil Denmark Guatemala Bulgaria Estonia France Dominican Germany Kazakhstan Republic Indonesia Malaysia El Salvador Algeria China Ireland Nepal Ivory Coast Benin Croatia Italy Panama Honduras Cameroon Greece Myanmar Serbia