Prominent retail brands have warned that the dwindling pool of experienced consultants who are able to fill senior roles, and the pressure to provide on-the-job training to young graduates when resources are low, are now major concerns needing urgent attention.
Vanya Lessing, Sure Travel CEO, described finding experienced consultants as one of the industry’s most critical challenges. “It’s a huge industry concern,” she said.
Lessing said graduates were not work-ready, adding that this had been a challenge for many years. She said the issue was the hot topic at the TBCSA conference, held at Sun City last week.
The talent pipeline
Various initiatives have been attempted to develop talent over time, including Asata’s Young Professionals Programme. Lessing said that Asata had worked hard to develop formal qualifications for skilled and qualified travel experts. However, she said most of these platforms were dormant and progress in building SA’s talent pipeline had stalled.
The pandemic had caused a vacuum of talent in the industry, Lessing said. She reported that many experienced consultants had been lost to other industries and that Sure’s members who were trying to re-staff in order to scale up their businesses post-pandemic were struggling to find experienced consultants.
Sure Travel isn’t the only brand experiencing the problem. Megan Vorster, People and Culture GM at Flight Centre Travel Group SA (FCTGSA), agreed. “We are finding it more difficult as travel ramps up and all travel agencies are on recruitment drives.
“The talent pool is limited and we are seeing that individuals who were retrenched during COVID-19 have found alternative roles. The applications we are receiving are not from within the industry, with limited work experience. From a FCTGSA perspective, we are still on a drive for corporate, leisure and independent consultants, and we have some skilled support positions available. We are also recruiting for our European colleagues, as they are hiring resources here in South Africa to serve their own clients.” She said, in total, the organisation had close to 70 vacancies on the board (excluding room for ITCs).
Internship is one method retailers use to upskill young professionals and transfer valuable skills before experienced consultants move on or retire. However, both Vorster and Lessing said internships required serious buy-in, time and resources, which many small businesses could ill afford.
Vorster said, depending on the student or intern’s background and training, many graduates in the past were not work-ready. “Generally, graduates come in very green and need more practical experience after the theory they have studied.
“FCTGSA has not had new interns for some time. We find that their training and onboarding have to be longer and more in-depth in order for it to work. This is not a position that we are in at the moment.” She noted that FCTGSA had had some real success stories in the past with college graduates.
Retailers said South Africa’s talent challenge was getting more attention in-house. Sure Travel is currently running a series of webinars on the subject of retaining talent and transferring skills. Vorster said Flight Centre’s Learning and Development Team was always working to ensure critical intellectual property was retained.
Recruitment specialist’s view
Kim Botti, a Director of Lee Botti & Associates, a specialist logistics and travel recruitment company, said there had been no new jobs in travel for two years during the pandemic, but there was more positivity and excitement in the industry as travel had returned.
Botti said many of the challenges being faced in South Africa were an issue worldwide, including staff shortages and a lack of skills.
“During COVID people in travel had to find alternative means for earning an income. Now that the industry is picking up, we are seeing many people either being re-employed or, in many cases, reluctant to come back to the industry.”
The retail travel industry is one where long hours can be required. Attention to detail is vital and mistakes can cost thousands.
“Consultants have the difficulty of managing travel bookings when so much change and uncertainty is still in place, and they are having to scramble to assist clients with reduced flight availability, difficulties in obtaining visas, and short supply of car-hire options,” said Botti.
She agreed that finding solutions would be difficult while businesses were still cash-strapped and under-resourced and she felt the problem would take time to correct. “There is a shortage of skills but companies don’t have the resources available in time and money for training when they are in survival mode. We are not seeing many opportunities for qualified youngsters without some work experience. As with most industries in South Africa, post-COVID, the skills shortage is across the board and training is necessary to upskill again, but this will take time and a huge investment which many companies are not yet in a position to take on as they rebuild their businesses.”
Lessing said it was imperative that the private and public sectors worked jointly with the government on long-term solutions. “We have to develop the talent pool that still exists.
“We have lost a lot of skill to other sectors in the industry. Travel and tourism is a highly volatile industry, and you need to be a specific type of person to be able to ride those peaks and valleys. It is a very stressful environment. You’re always on. And, in the past, it hasn’t necessarily been that well paid.”
