In a market in which staff shortages are the standard, TSG proves to be a reliable partner
“We don’t have to do new tricks. We continue doing what we already do well, but even better.” This is how Sil Hoeve, CEO of The Specialist Group (TSG), immediately makes a clear statement. A striking quote in times of challenges within the rapidly changing market, or a statement of the obvious? In this article, you will get the complete answer from Sil and Commercial Manager Laurens van Bemmel. Here’s a look into the future with leading roles for internationalization, cross-pollination, and talent development.
The world is changing rapidly, as are the markets in which TSG is active. Just think of relevant developments such as the energy transition, internationalization, changing legislation, the impact of automation, and the ever-increasing staff shortages. Factors that contribute to other parties within the white-collar staffing sector facing challenges. This does not apply to TSG, which will increase its turnover significantly in 2023. Commercial Manager Laurens explains: “We have always approached these changes as opportunities, not threats. And we will continue to do so in the future!” Does that mean a renewed focus on growth in turnover, markets, and new services in the coming years? Not necessarily.
‘Of course, we use automation and AI to make our systems even more efficient, but our people remain our most valuable asset at all times’ – Sil.
Focusing on a solid foundation
Being highly motivated to do what you are good at and becoming better and better at it. This mindset is typically TSG and also offers a solid backbone now. “In these dynamic times when our clients are all dealing with the energy transition, changing legislation, and major fluctuations in the workforce, the demand for a reliable partner is high. So, we will continue to focus on what we’re good at. Stability, quality, and always delivering,” says Sil. That is precisely why TSG and its five labels will continue to focus on matching technical specialists with leading investments in Energy Transition, Infrastructure, and Life Science in the coming period. The fact that TSG is adding more and more value in these sectors is shown through this insight of Laurens: “Previously, downstream processing in our original Oil & Gas sector may have accounted for 70 to 80% of our turnover. Now we see that collaborations in the Energy Transition, Life Science, and Infrastructure already account for more than 50% of our turnover.” These figures reveal something about the flexibility, expertise, and reach of TSG as a staffing partner.
‘Our vast pool of specialists allows clients to continue to respond flexibly to the peak moments of their investments’ – Laurens.
The grey elephant in the room
That’s all very nice, but we can also look at figures that make you see the world of TSG more critically. Like this percentage: unemployment in the Netherlands is currently below 4%. Sil: “That means that we can speak of a shortage of personnel. And that shortage is even greater in our sector, with its specific demand for highly qualified technical personnel. For example, there are 80,000 vacancies for technical specialists in the Netherlands alone.” As far as Laurens is concerned, this is not just a recent phenomenon: “Ten years ago, we were also talking about the aging of the technical sector and the challenges that this brought. But now the average age of technicians may be approaching 60, so it is time for a rejuvenation of the sector.”
‘In the Netherlands, for every 100 available technical specialists, there are at least 110 vacancies’ – Laurens.
What does that shortage look like in reality? In 2024, it is no longer exceptional for an investment to be put on hold due to a lack of skilled personnel. Fortunately, TSG is working hard on a sustainable solution for its clients with its various talent development programs. Sil: “Although we do not only focus on inflow from the bottom up, we also look at lateral entrants.” A statement with which Sil invites us to look into themes such as customized traineeships and international recruitment.
Investing in customized talent development
When discussing TSG and talent development, you cannot ignore TSG’s academy, which plays a crucial role in several ways. For example, specialists who are already employed are offered training to continue to enrich their knowledge. In addition, the TSG academy also trains new talents and thus provides opportunities for people who want to start their careers in technology. You can, therefore, say with certainty that the academy is successful for the group itself and its clients, who benefit from well-trained specialists. “We also train talent in-company. For example, we realized a Graduate Traineeship for one of our clients from recruiting and selecting eight international female, young professionals to developing and implementing the two-year traineeship,” Laurens outlines a telling example. But is there also a downside to quickly training young talent? Sil: “Sometimes you would rather opt for the more experienced specialist, who is increasingly difficult to find. On the other hand, it means that as TSG, we offer our young talents real career opportunities and, at the same time, provide our customers with qualified specialists with unprecedented ambition!” And that’s how optimism wins here, too.
Cross-pollination between labels, markets, and countries
What also makes us optimistic is TSG’s broad reach and the diversity it offers its clients. Incidentally, the vision of deploying specialist expertise within various sectors was developed years ago. Laurens: “At the time, we discovered that our safety experts in Oil & Gas could also be of great help in the construction of (Amsterdam’s – ed.) North/South line.” Due to this insight, TSG partners can now use a broad pool of specialists from various sectors. TSG serves sectors in countries like the Netherlands, Sweden, Germany, and Belgium, with five labels. Sil: “We see that our labels are working together increasingly better. As a result, specialists not only get great international opportunities, but we also always find the right specialist for our clients at one of our labels.” This is how TSG thinks, works, and recruits across borders. Antwerp’s international recruitment team puts this mindset into practice every day. “In this way, we continue to expand our pool with trained specialists from different countries successfully,” Sil explains.
‘Labels like Litecad, STAR, and Altio work even better together. As a result, we have now also been able to place specialists from the Netherlands and Germany on investments in Sweden’ – Sil.
Producing progress, also in the future
You could say that the strength and future of TSG lie in combining knowledge and expertise from different sectors and applying it repeatedly in new contexts. To optimize this strategy in the future, the group successfully invests in talent development and international cross-pollination. Despite the challenges in the market – or rather, because of those challenges – Sil and Laurens look to the future with confidence. Because in a time when everyday issues guide other parties, TSG consciously opts for stability and quality. Laurens: “We remain a reliable partner for our clients because we can build on our traineeships and international recruitment. This way, we help all our clients complete their future investments.” With this approach, TSG remains a leading player in specialist staffing, ready to seize future opportunities. Or as Sil says: “Our people create progress: they did that yesterday, they do it today, and they will continue to make it happen tomorrow!”