Understanding Everything About Talent Hunting and Talent Management For African Teams

Africa has the youngest population in the world, with about 60% of the population under the age of 25. This high number is a golden opportunity for economic growth, especially if these young people’s potential and talent can be nurtured by their employers. African companies, whether startups, small businesses, or established companies — must recognize the importance of proper talent hunting and talent management strategies to remain competitive and drive business growth.

In this article, we’ll dive deep into challenges African companies encounter in terms of talent hunting and what strategies can they deploy to counter it. 

Challenges About Talent Hunting and Talent Management in African Teams

Africa is a place full of untapped potential. However, there are some challenges in regard to talent hunting and talent management in African companies that can be seen. Some of them are:

• Skill Mismatch and Skill Gap - One of the major challenges African companies face is the shortage of talent due to skill mismatch. While there is a growing number of graduates ready to enter the workforce, most of them lack the specific skills required in their industry. 
• Brain Drain - Africa has been struggling with what is called as “brain drain”, as many talented individuals seek job opportunities abroad instead of locally. According to surveys, 52% of young African people are considering emigrating due to economic hardship and lack of job opportunities.
• Infrastructure and Technology - African countries, particularly those in Central Africa, suffer from inadequate infrastructure, poor transportation, unreliable internet connectivity, and lack of electricity. This leads to huge loss in economic growth as well as business productivity.
  

Strategies For A Successful Talent Hunting and Talent Management

While there are many challenges that can be encountered in hiring for African teams, a great talent strategy can help in recruiting the best talent, optimizing current employees' productivity, increasing engagement, and overall fuel business growth. Some strategies that you can employ are: 

1. Provide training and development

Great talent management involves providing training and continuous learning opportunities for workers. This empowers employees to continuously upskill and reskill, keeping the company competitive and up to trend in an ever-evolving business landscape. 

Companies that invest in a comprehensive training program experience 11% greater profit than companies that don’t. This is because training provides employees with the skills and knowledge needed to succeed in their roles. It also gives them better job satisfaction and higher levels of engagement, leading to employee retention and overall business success. 

This is even more crucial for African companies, as inadequately skilled workforces is noted to be a major constraint for various businesses in the continent. It’s particularly evident in the skill mismatch between the low level of digital and technological skills of people and the growing Information and Communication Technology (ICT) intensive jobs. 

According to studies, the average ICT intensity of jobs in South Africa increased by 26% over the last decade, while 18.4% of all formal sector employment in Kenya occurs in occupations with high ICT intensity. If you want to succeed as an employer in Africa, providing technological training and courses for your employees can help in nurturing talent and addressing any skill gaps.

2. Provide a great work environment

A happy and positive work environment provides countless benefits for you and your employees. A great environment increases productivity, provides high job satisfaction, and improves morale — all of which lead to higher employee retention. 

To ensure that you foster a positive work environment, consider the following:

• Clear and open communication - Make sure to encourage open and honest communication among team members, as well as between the employees and leadership. Set regular meetings or check-ins to ensure that everyone is on the same page and that ideas or feedback can be heard. 
• Fair compensation - According to a study in 2022, the average monthly salary in Africa is around 758 USD, which is 10x lower than the average salary in the US or UK. While salary will vary depending on skill, work experience, industry, and country, providing a fair and competitive salary is crucial for every employee in the world. 
• Performance review - Establishing consistent performance reviews can help in identifying issues or areas of improvement for an employee. It can also help in identifying growth opportunities or giving employees recognition for a job well done. 
• Ensure work-life balance - According to Talent Trends Africa 2023 Report, 6 in 10 African employees would choose mental health and work-life balance over career success. Ensure that your company prioritizes work-life balance by offering flexible work arrangements, setting clear work hours boundaries, and providing employees access to mental health resources and support.  
• Provide tools - Equipping your employees with the tools they need to work will make them more effective, productive, and generally happy. This is even more helpful for fresh graduates or low-income people who may not have access to these tools. These tools can be laptops, desktops, keyboards, or software like communication tools, file storage, or document sharing. 

3. Focus on your branding

Branding plays an important role in attracting people to work in your company. This is because a company with a solid branding looks more professional, credible, and trustworthy. In fact, 75% of job seekers consider an employer’s brand before even applying for a job. A positive employer brand is crucial if you want to attract top talent and retain talented employees.

While your company’s values and culture are important, don’t underestimate the power of your visual branding as well. Make sure you have a well-designed logo, a cohesive aesthetic for all your marketing materials, as well as a seamless and optimized web design. Think about it. Will you really want to work for a company that doesn’t even have a logo or a functioning website? No, right? You’ll probably think of them as unprofessional, or worse, a scam.  

A great company name is also crucial in building your branding. Make sure to choose a name that clearly communicates your values, is easy to spell and remember, as well as suitable for your industry. If you don’t have a name yet or are thinking of rebranding, check out some business name generators online to get started.

4. Embrace remote work

Between the pandemic and the rise of technology around the world, remote work has been bustling more than ever in Africa. We can especially see an upward trend of it in more technologically advanced countries like South Africa, Egypt, Nigeria, and Kenya. 

The current work landscape has veered away from the traditional office setting and is now focusing on flexible workplace arrangements. According to surveys, 90% of African developers want the option to work fully or partially remote. A sizable 57% of people would look for a new job if their current company didn’t allow remote work. While 71% of remote workers said remote work helps give them a better work-life balance. 

Employees are seeing the benefits of remote work which is why there is an increasing demand for it. Companies that prioritize such flexibility have a better chance of attracting and retaining talent not just in Africa, but on a global scale as well. 

Final Thoughts

Talent hunting and talent management are crucial for a thriving and successful company. As Africa’s working-age population continues to grow, businesses should also adapt to provide more work opportunities as well as a positive work environment that encourages training and development to attract talent and nurture them.