Global leadership talent shortage forecast

There will be more jobs available this year than applicants qualified to fill them, according to research.

A shrinking workforce and ageing population will leave 2008 as the year of the empty desk, with employers needing to alter recruiting strategies or lose out, the Have You Got Talent? report by professional services firm Deloitte found.

It said the global talent pool would shrink by almost 15% over the next 40 years, and that there was currently too much emphasis within organisaitons on cultivating senior leaders at the expense of other positions.

"Demand for the right people is outstripping supply," said Anne-Marie Malley, Deloitte's research leader.

"Talent management strategies will need to be deployed more broadly, and extend way beyond individuals in leadership positions."

More than three-quarters of the talent strategies surveyed targeted high-potential individuals in senior leadership positions.

Deloitte interviewed 58 of the world's leading organisations, with a combined revenue of £603bn, who collectively employ more than two million people.