‘Flex’ Is the Keyword for Success in the 2023 Labor Market

We are about to finish 2022 and it is time to take a look at the trends that will help us have a successful new year in terms of human resources. Why should we keep the word “flexible” or “flex” in our mind in 2023 when we talk about the IT world of work? From flex work models for employees to flex models for IT projects, it's a concept we need to know and understand. 

The days when the home office was reserved just for managers or directors are gone. Today, it is common for companies to allow most of their employees to work remotely for part or all of the workday. Even the associates expect this flexibility, since they consider that remote work is a benefit in both directions.

In Mexico, according to the latest survey by PageGroup, almost half of employees affirm that they are more productive working in this modality, only 11.2 percent think that they are less productive and the rest say they remain the same.

But hybrid work has also brought concerns for the mental health and well-being of employees to the top of the concerns for human resources departments. One way to ensure that workers are treated fairly is to apply consistent policies on issues such as work hours, performance evaluation, and information security. In a hybrid working environment, no one should suffer “proximity bias,” where bosses prefer employees who spend more time close by.

Opportunity Areas in IT Management

In the Estudio de Remuneración 2022-2023 by PageGroup, the report perceives that there is an area of ​​opportunity for companies in the application of tools designed precisely to solve the dilemma between work time and results beyond hybrid schemes.

This organizational change has allowed companies to be clear about their investment objectives with 64.5 percent of employers saying that they seek to invest in technology in the short or medium term, specifically in collaborative software, customer relationship management tools and cloud storage, which shows the importance for organizations to strengthen their remote operation capability. However, only 57.3 percent have enough IT talent to take advantage of this investment. 

A good example is the application of control tools, which aim to make the project delivery process more efficient by optimizing workflow. It focuses on the collaborative model to guarantee productivity and efficiency.

Rise of Flex Models

The demand from the labor market for technology is growing in the midst of a complex offer, since the same flexibility that has been given as a work option has caused an increase in the demand for projects.

Currently, candidates are looking for flexibility both in schedules and in work modality, as well as other types of benefits. However, the boom in contracting by projects responds to the fact that on average, an IT professional does not stay more than two years in a company. Their priority is the salary, which exceeds that of other areas of knowledge, the certifications that they obtain when participating in a company's project and in their own autonomy.

Another business option to achieve your objectives is nearshoring, which is also growing. It is an opportunity for subcontracting specialized services or talents, of an activity with lower cost, higher proximity and better delivery times.

In the workplace, IT staffing is a talent management tool that arises from the need in companies to have high-performance work teams in relatively short terms, in order to achieve the digital transformation of their businesses. This market today represents US$64 billion.

Key Trends to Consider for 2023

Based on these changes in the technological environment, using the valuable information of the Estudio de Remuneración and considering the experience of having daily conversations with leaders in companies and key IT talent, I can see two trends in the IT labor market for 2023:

• The flexibility of resources. In IT staffing, the resources belong to the provider, and gives you the opportunity to hire specialized services. Companies can find many advantages with this option because they need to find the solution to the technological issues they have, with the help of specialized talent. However, to attract these profiles, they must offer flexibility in various ways, both in managing budgets and in the options given to talent.

• Fixed costs per project. This is a more appropriate management of the budget, since it is generated by project and for a determined time.

After learning about these trends, we can understand that working with flexible models in IT projects is a great success for companies and offers great value for talent in this sector. Let's think flex while entering the new IT labor era.