The Workforce Risk Outlook Report

Executive Summary of our Assessment of Labor Market Risks to 15 Industries Across the Fortune 1000

The labor market is at a critical inflection point.

Our report, The Rising Storm, illustrates that all industries are on the “outer bands” of a major upheaval in the world of work as we know it—labor shortages, technological change, and a tidal wave of disruptive skills will affect every job, and as a result, every business’s ability to sustain a skilled workforce that can execute the mission of the organization.

Businesses are already feeling the financial impacts of talent shortages:

32%of Organizations, surveyed by Ion have already suffered a loss from failure to attract talent in the last 12 months.

60%of Businesses, surveyed by The World Economic Forum say that skills gaps hold back their transformation.

72%of CEOs, surveyed by BCG say that talent gaps and shortages present their top business challenge.

The Magnitude of Business Impact

No industry is “safe” from the talent shortage and skills upheaval.

All jobs are changing—which means if organizational strategy and talent architecture do not row synchronously in turbulent waters, CEOs, CFOs, and COOs will find themselves in a sinking ship unless they invest in the agility of skills needed to impact the business.

Waiting to take control of talent strategies while the eye of the storm arrives leads to 7 critical business impacts:

1. The cost of doing business is rising.

Organizations need to ensure roles and skills are aligned with market expectations and that their employer brand attracts and retains scarce talent, or risk “bidding wars” for qualified talent, further driving up compensation costs.

2. You can't recruit what's not there.

Organizations may spend more on advertising, recruitment agencies, and extended search periods; and longer recruitment cycles create onboarding delays, affecting project timelines and revenue generation.

3. The domino effect of turnover is worse than any one individual leaving.

Overworked staff and employees whose skills are mismatched with their roles and career paths are more likely to leave, incurring greater recruitment and training costs, loss of institutional knowledge, and disruptions in workflow and team cohesion. A diminished employee culture also harms employer brands, making recruitment even more difficult.

Download the Full Report to see the other four business impacts the impending labor shortage and skill disruption shifts will deliver to companies.

Knowing what labor market pressures major industries will be up against creates the opportunity for the entire C-suite to work in concert in taking the best next step for their organization. Understanding the impacts of labor supply, demand, unemployment rates, and disruptive skills—mapped within the context of individual industries—sheds light on potential risks facing workforce sectors so business leaders can proactively mitigate them and create a competitive advantage.

Our Lightcast Workforce Risk Outlook Experience delivers industry analysis and a risk score for each of the companies in the Fortune 1000.