儘管亞太區的企業持續面臨經濟不確定性，但我們已經能看到隧道盡頭的曙光。 根據Moody’s Analytics，至 2022 年底，本區主要經濟體的實質 GDP 成長將超過 2019 年第四季度的水平。2023年的前景甚至更加看好。

這種期待已久的反彈為準備一展鴻圖的企業提供了在亞太區擴大規模的機會。 Microsoft-IDC 最近的一項研究指出，利用疫情加速數位轉型並重新思考其業務模式的公司，將從這一波新的成長動能中獲益最多。

然而創新和修正策略的加速也帶來了諸多挑戰。面對飛快轉變的環境，人才供需的波動迫使企業重新思考原先的人力策略，並開始採用新興的招募方式來保持競爭力。在這個活躍且快速發展的時局，執行良好的臨時人力策略將為未來職場帶來重大的影響力。

一、擴展臨時人力的重要性

臨時人力構成了快速成長的零工經濟核心，並持續重塑世界對於工作的定義。其中包括不是企業正式員額，卻為公司提供服務的工作者，像是獨立承包商、自由接案者、約派人員和其他臨時員工。

從我們最新發表的職場趨勢報告中可以發現，臨時人力已成為亞太區人力策略中的關鍵要素，是高達50％的企業在面臨人才短缺時的解困首選。而新加坡、馬來西亞、香港和印尼皆是高度採用臨時人力的地區。

更重要的是，從調查中顯示出這種趨勢正在大多數的產業中不斷增強。亞太區超過58％的受訪者表示他們早已採用臨時人力，而25％的企業聲明他們將在未來的兩年內提高雇用臨時人力。

值得我們持續關注的是，是什麼推動著這種不斷成長的招募方式。

二、臨時人力如何提供協助？

在當今充斥著不確定性的時代，即便是最優秀的商業領袖也難以預視未來。身為財務和營運團隊，必須做好反覆調整的準備來跟上變化多端的市場。企業還必須應對無法預料的自願離職而造成的人力空缺。舉例來說，有證據顯示Ｚ世代以及千禧世代正從全職工作轉為投入更為彈性和不緊繃的自由接案世界。當然，面對業務量突然暴漲、新的短期專案或是季度高峰，我們都有可能在最後一刻尋求機動人員的支援。

我們的報告中發現，企業採用臨時人力的最常見原因是其在人力規劃上的彈性，例如更容易根據需求來擴大或縮小規模。平均來看， 55％的亞太企業表示這正是他們採用臨時人力的主要動機，尤其是印度和越南的佔比最多。而第二個最受歡迎的原因，是能在不影響正常營運的情況下幫助填補特定專業人員空缺，新加坡的企業反應最為熱烈。

臨時人力還可以為長達幾個月到兩年不等的短期或特定專案補足專業技能。利用這段期間，企業可以在長期聘用前評估人才是否符合公司的需求和文化。而且在某些情況下，臨時人力可以為新創公司和努力打造新產品的企業建立銷售管道並帶來價值。

較為繁忙或將心力放在業績成長的企業，在尋找臨時員工時往往會尋求專家的協助。在我們的調查中，48% 的受訪者會根據其員工人數需求和策略選擇與人力顧問公司合作，尤其是 IT／高科技、醫療保健、銀行／保險、政府機構、製造業，以及專業服務領域。 趨勢還顯示，流動率高的職位（例如藍領工作者和客服中心員工）會更傾向外包給更了解產業和人才的人力仲介。將人力顧問公司作為其人才供應鏈的一部分，可以幫助企業在短時間內輕鬆填補人員缺口，讓內部的人事團隊能夠得以專注處理其他高價值的任務。

三、改變中的觀念

企業接受臨時人力作為替代一部分主要人力的趨勢，一直是一個焦點話題。來自人才緊縮和快速數位轉型的壓力再次印證了這種轉變。 我們的報告指出，企業現在已認識到，臨時人力是其整體人才戰略重要的一部分。

因此，臨時員工的待遇正在改善。在我們的調查中，74% 的亞太地區企業表示，他們可能會以和全職員工相同或更好的方式獎勵臨時員工，在 IT／高科技、醫療保健、銀行／保險和製造業尤為顯著。 這些領域的頂尖人才爭奪戰往往最為激烈，因此獎勵有助於挽留人才，並且讓業務不至於中斷。 最有可能為臨時員工提供比正職人員更好福利的市場包括香港、紐西蘭、印度、中國、台灣和越南。

四、需求技能

東南亞蓬勃發展的金融科技和電子商務產生對科技人才的巨大需求。 例如，在馬來西亞，資通信產業正在以驚人的速度擴張，預計到 2025 年將佔該國 GDP 的 22.6%。與此同時，面對日益激烈的全球競爭，馬來西亞的科技公司需要迅速擴大規模。

在某些情況下，與聘用全職員工相比，臨時員工可以為公司提供更多的敏捷性。 由於人才緊縮沒有緩解的跡象，從我們的報告中得知，資訊類技能在新加坡的需求量僅次於一般行政，在馬來西亞則是需求量最高，這一點也就不足為奇了。

五、支援你的臨時人力

我們最新的職場趨勢報告揭示了臨時人力將如何在未來繼續發揮更關鍵的作用，為雇主提供更彈性的人力管理。

透過量身訂製的彈性方案，PERSOLKELLY協助亞太地區的企業成功管理人力配置，包括招募、入職、考勤追蹤、費用管理、報告和管理服務等級等。例如，我們可以評估公司的績效管理系統如何適用於臨時員工，並確定他們是否有資格獲得與全職員工相同的福利。

作為我們在亞太地區的人才解決方案的一部分，職場趨勢報告中的調查數據將幫助我們為客戶建立強大的臨時人力策略，使企業能夠搭上下一波令人興奮的成長機會。

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How Can A Contingent Workforce Help Build Business Agility?

While businesses continue to face economic uncertainty across Asia Pacific, it’s a tremendous relief to see some light at the end of the tunnel. According to Moody’s Analytics, by the end of 2022, all major economies in the region will have achieved real GDP growth exceeding levels measured in 2019’s fourth quarter. The outlook for 2023 is even better.

This long-awaited rebound presents ambitious businesses of all sizes with a wave of opportunities to scale up across Asia Pacific. A recent Microsoft-IDC study suggests companies that used the pandemic to accelerate their digital transformation and rethink their business models will gain the most from this new growth phase.

But forging innovation and modifying strategies at pace brings challenges. In addition, the fluctuation of supply and demand of talents in today’s volatile landscape compels companies to rethink their traditional workforce strategies and embrace fresh hiring approaches to stay competitive. In this dynamic, fast-evolving space, a well-implemented Contingent Workforce strategy can make all the difference to the future of work.

1. Contingent Workforce Grows in Importance

The Contingent Workforce forms a core part of the fast-growing Gig Economy that continues to reshape the world of work. It includes workers who are not on the company payroll but provide similar services to the organisation, such as independent contractors, freelancers, agency hires and other temporary employees.

Our latest Workforce Insights Report reveals that a Contingent Workforce is already a critical part of workforce employment strategies in Asia Pacific, with over 50% of all companies turning to it when experiencing a headcount shortage. Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Indonesia are the highest adopters of a Contingent Workforce.

More importantly, our survey revealed that the trend is strengthening across most industries. Over 58% respondents across Asia Pacific said that they are already adopting a Contingent Workforce, while 25% of companies indicated that they will increase their usage over the next two years.

Let’s take a look at what’s driving this growing recruitment practice.

2. How a Contingent Workforce Can Help

Even the best business leaders struggle to predict the future in today’s uncertain times. Finance and operations teams must be ready to repeatedly pivot to keep up with an ever-shifting set of market conditions. Companies also have to deal with workforce gaps created by unforeseen voluntary turnover. For example, evidence shows Gen Z and younger millennials are shifting from full-time employment to the more flexible and less intense world of freelancing. And, of course, sudden spurts of business growth, new short-term projects or seasonal spikes can all bring last-minute calls for urgent staffing.

Our report found that the most common reason businesses adopt a Contingent Workforce is its flexibility for workforce planning, making it easier to upsize or downsize as required. On average, 55% of companies surveyed across the region stated this as their primary motivation, with the highest responses coming from Vietnam and India. The second most popular reason for hiring a Contingent Workforce is to help fill specialised roles without disrupting normal business operations, with the strongest responses coming from Singapore companies.

A Contingent Workforce can also bring in specialised skills on a short-term or project basis lasting anything from a few months up to two years in duration. This fixed-term period can allow time for management to evaluate talent and assess whether they match the company’s needs and culture before hiring permanently. And, in some cases, a Contingent Workforce brings value by building a sales pipeline for start-ups and companies with new product offerings.

Busy, growth-focused companies tend to appreciate expert help when sourcing a Contingent Workforce. 48% of the respondents to our survey engage recruitment agencies for their headcount needs and strategies, especially within the IT/Hi-Tech, Healthcare, Banking/Insurance, Government Agencies, Manufacturing, and Professional Services sectors. There’s also a trend for roles with high attrition rates (such as blue-collar workers and call centre staff) to be outsourced to agencies that know the industry and talent pool landscape better. Using recruitment agencies as part of their talent supply chain can help companies fill staffing gaps at short notice with less fuss and allows Human Resources teams to get on with other high-value tasks.

3. Changing Mindsets

The trend for businesses accepting a Contingent Workforce as part of the mainstream workforce has been a focal topic for a while. The talent crunch and pressures on delivering rapid digital transformation projects have reaffirmed the mindset. Our Report suggests that companies now recognise that a Contingent Workforce forms an essential part of their overall talent strategy.

As a result, the treatment of the Contingent Workforce is improving. In our survey, 74% of Asia Pacific companies say they are likely to reward contingent workers in the same way or better than full-time staff, particularly for the IT/Hi-Tech, Healthcare, Banking/Insurance and Manufacturing sectors. These are sectors where the battle for top talent tends to be most intense, so rewards help to ensure retention and business continuity. The markets most likely to offer contingent workers better rewards than permanent hires include Hong Kong, New Zealand, India, China, Taiwan and Vietnam.

4. Skills in Demand

Southeast Asia’s booming fintech and ecommerce sector has led to a massive demand for tech talent. In Malaysia, for example, the information and communications technology (ICT) sector is expanding at breakneck speed and predicted to contribute 22.6% of the country’s GDP by 2025. At the same time, tech firms across the region need to rapidly scale up in the face of skyrocketing global competition.

A Contingent Workforce can in some instances provide companies with more agility than hiring a full-time workforce. And with the talent crunch showing no signs of easing, it’s no surprise to learn from our Report that Information Technology skills are the second most in demand in Singapore after General Administration and the highest in demand in Malaysia.

5. Supporting Your Contingent Workforce Strategy

Our latest Workforce Insights Report has revealed how a Contingent Workforce will continue to play an even more critical role in the future, offering employers greater workforce management flexibility.

PERSOLKELLY can help businesses successfully navigate this landscape by providing customised solutions for flexible workforce management across Asia Pacific, including Recruitment, Onboarding, Time-attendance tracking, Billing, Reporting and Managing SLAs. We can evaluate how a company’s performance management systems apply to Contingent Workforce hires, for example, and determine whether they will be eligible for the same benefits as their full-time employees.

The survey data from the report will help us build and refine robust Contingent Workforce strategies for our clients as part of our Regional Talent Solutions across Asia Pacific, enabling businesses to unleash the next wave of exciting growth opportunities.

(Optional: Download the 2022 APAC Workforce Insights Report)