Live polling conducted at the NOA Symposium has revealed that recruiting good people is the main concern those in outsourcing have regarding the future of their industry. The Symposium boasted a 50:50 ratio of buyers to suppliers, suggesting that this concern was shared by buyers, service providers and advisories alike.

When asked “which of the following will most drive the growth of outsourcing over the next five years,” the audience answered:

Proving the business value delivered: 43%

Opportunities from digital, cloud, robotics etc.: 33%

Better strategic alignment between buyers and service providers: 20%

Improving the UK economy: 3%

44 per cent of the audience then agreed that “recruiting good people” was their main concern about the future of outsourcing, more so than disruptive technologies or decreasing profit margins.

On a scale of one to 10, the significance of the UK outsourcing industry’s skills shortage was seen as a solid seven. Recent NOA research has found that those in the industry do not see apprenticeships as a priority for bridging this skills gap. This could be bad news for the Conservative party, which has pledged to provide three million new apprenticeships during their next five years in government.

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Related: QA Apprenticeships Tackles the UK’s Critical Tech Skills Shortage