Building Workforce Resilience in the Fashion and Luxury Goods Industry

Building Workforce Resilience in the Fashion and Luxury Goods Industry
November 30, 2023 5 mins

Building Workforce Resilience in the Fashion and Luxury Goods Industry

886766484

With more brands looking to reposition themselves in the fashion and luxury industry and secure their future, a robust workforce resilience strategy will be key.

Key Takeaways
  1. Digitalization has many implications on talent strategy, from determining what skills are needed, to attracting, retaining and developing skills for the future.
  2. Employee data helps firms understand their current workforce and how to develop and refine their EVP.
  3. Knowing where a business stands on pay transparency is crucial for making decisions around rewards, compensation and DE&I.

The luxury goods sector is becoming an increasingly crowded space, as brands that once did not see themselves as operators in the luxury goods market, now identify opportunities to diversify and create products and services that can be sold at a premium. The question then remains: Is this trend leading to the luxury goods industry facing a talent crunch that will place greater strain on their ability to retain, attract and upskill talent?

This is one reason — alongside a reassessment of workforce priorities and wellbeing as a result of the pandemic — why a focus on building workforce resilience is key. Initiatives like differentiating employee benefits to help create a standout employee value propositions (EVPs), increasing a firm’s emphasis on wellbeing, and upskilling and reskilling existing talent, will be vital for the long-term future of every luxury goods brand.

The Luxury of Competition

In order to respond to the demands of younger customers that are pushing into the luxury goods segment, it will be critically important to leverage new technologies and adjust to the digital landscape. This may require a reevaluation of skillsets available versus those needed to future proof the organization.

To drive their digital transformation, luxury brands will need a standout tech team — which means looking outside of retail and competing with the likes of Google and Apple to secure talent that can take advantage of growth and value opportunities in areas like digital assets and artificial intelligence. Many businesses will find the competition too hot and face questions regarding their existing pay and reward structures. Can they be flexible enough to meet the increased salary demands needed to attract this new talent?

Quote icon

If you’re a traditional business in the luxury goods sector, you need to be ready for new entrants who are going to come after your talent.”

John McLaughlin
Partner, Talent Solutions; Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Aon

Know What Skill are Needed

One way luxury businesses can start their workforce resilience journey is by undertaking a skills gap analysis. This will allow them to understand what existing and transferable skills they already have and what skills they might need. Take a job family such as finance, for example. What are the technical skills, soft skills and future skills that the finance function will need to succeed in this changing environment?

Consider the indicators that someone already in the business can develop into another role. In many cases, training and learning are the simple parts; employees need to have the right propensities to fill other roles. If a business needs to look outside for a tech role, for example, flexibility around the types of considered candidates is key. It will be important to keep an eye on the market in order to have the right skillsets available to supplement the strategic direction of the organization. The current challenge for brands is staying true to core values and historical customers, while also capturing the desires of Gen Z. This applies to both the consumer and design experience, which requires reevaluating skillsets holistically to satisfy all stakeholders.

Quote icon

We help clients understand what skills they have, identify gaps and then benchmark them against peers. It’s a tool that helps to inform their learning and development strategy and future proof the organization.”

Giles Patterson
Talent Practice Sector Lead – Retail, Consumer & eCommerce, Human Capital, EMEA, Aon

Know the Workforce Demographic

Knowing what skills are already available in an organization is important for workforce resilience, but so understanding the workforce demographic and making sure talent decisions are not based on unconscious bias or inaccurate and subjective perceptions. Surveying the workforce directly is important to find out what employees really need and value.

Employees now have different needs than they did five to ten years ago. While the modern workforce may look very different, the benefit packages — health insurance, life assurance and pensions — remain mostly the same. Providing help for physical, mental and financial wellbeing will not only provide a point of differentiation for an EVP, but it will help promote workforce resilience.

Quote icon

Consider having a signature benefit within your EVP — for example, cover for cancer, a particular health condition, or mental health. Something that will stand out in the employee market.”

Andrew Cunningham
Vice President, Global Benefits, Aon

Of course, workforce resilience is also about employees having a career plan and feeling aligned to an organization’s vision and culture. Ultimately, it’s important for luxury brands to project the same values externally as are reflected internally for employees. This is especially as sustainability and diversity, equity and inclusion make their way into the benefits arena.

Want to learn more about the latest key trends and issues impacting the luxury goods industry? Download our Designing a Sustainable Future for the Fashion and Luxury Goods Industry paper.

General Disclaimer

The information contained herein and the statements expressed are of a general nature and are not intended to address the circumstances of any particular individual or entity. Although we endeavor to provide accurate and timely information and use sources we consider reliable, there can be no guarantee that such information is accurate as of the date it is received or that it will continue to be accurate in the future. No one should act on such information without appropriate professional advice after a thorough examination of the particular situation.

Terms of Use

The contents herein may not be reproduced, reused, reprinted or redistributed without the expressed written consent of Aon, unless otherwise authorized by Aon. To use information contained herein, please write to our team.

Aon's Better Being Podcast

Our Better Being podcast series, hosted by Aon Chief Wellbeing Officer Rachel Fellowes, explores wellbeing strategies and resilience. This season we cover human sustainability, kindness in the workplace, how to measure wellbeing, managing grief and more.

Aon Insights Series Asia

Expert Views on Today's Risk Capital and Human Capital Issues

Aon Insights Series Pacific

Expert Views on Today's Risk Capital and Human Capital Issues

Aon Insights Series UK

Expert Views on Today's Risk Capital and Human Capital Issues

Construction and Infrastructure

The construction industry is under pressure from interconnected risks and notable macroeconomic developments. Learn how your organization can benefit from construction insurance and risk management.

Cyber Labs

Stay in the loop on today's most pressing cyber security matters.

Cyber Resilience

Our Cyber Resilience collection gives you access to Aon’s latest insights on the evolving landscape of cyber threats and risk mitigation measures. Reach out to our experts to discuss how to make the right decisions to strengthen your organization’s cyber resilience.

Employee Wellbeing

Our Employee Wellbeing collection gives you access to the latest insights from Aon's human capital team. You can also reach out to the team at any time for assistance with your employee wellbeing needs.

Environmental, Social and Governance Insights

Explore Aon's latest environmental social and governance (ESG) insights.

Q4 2023 Global Insurance Market Insights

Our Global Insurance Market Insights highlight insurance market trends across pricing, capacity, underwriting, limits, deductibles and coverages.

Regional Results

How do the top risks on business leaders’ minds differ by region and how can these risks be mitigated? Explore the regional results to learn more.

Human Capital Analytics

Our Human Capital Analytics collection gives you access to the latest insights from Aon's human capital team. Contact us to learn how Aon’s analytics capabilities helps organizations make better workforce decisions.

Insights for HR

Explore our hand-picked insights for human resources professionals.

Workforce

Our Workforce Collection provides access to the latest insights from Aon’s Human Capital team on topics ranging from health and benefits, retirement and talent practices. You can reach out to our team at any time to learn how we can help address emerging workforce challenges.

Mergers and Acquisitions

Our Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) collection gives you access to the latest insights from Aon's thought leaders to help dealmakers make better decisions. Explore our latest insights and reach out to the team at any time for assistance with transaction challenges and opportunities.

Navigating Volatility

How do businesses navigate their way through new forms of volatility and make decisions that protect and grow their organizations?

Parametric Insurance

Our Parametric Insurance Collection provides ways your organization can benefit from this simple, straightforward and fast-paying risk transfer solution. Reach out to learn how we can help you make better decisions to manage your catastrophe exposures and near-term volatility.

Pay Transparency and Equity

Our Pay Transparency and Equity collection gives you access to the latest insights from Aon's human capital team on topics ranging from pay equity to diversity, equity and inclusion. Contact us to learn how we can help your organization address these issues.

Property Risk Management

Forecasters are predicting an extremely active 2024 Atlantic hurricane season. Take measures to build resilience to mitigate risk for hurricane-prone properties.

Technology

Our Technology Collection provides access to the latest insights from Aon's thought leaders on navigating the evolving risks and opportunities of technology. Reach out to the team to learn how we can help you use technology to make better decisions for the future.

Top 10 Global Risks

Trade, technology, weather and workforce stability are the central forces in today’s risk landscape.

Trade

Our Trade Collection gives you access to the latest insights from Aon's thought leaders on navigating the evolving risks and opportunities for international business. Reach out to our team to understand how to make better decisions around macro trends and why they matter to businesses.

Weather

With a changing climate, organizations in all sectors will need to protect their people and physical assets, reduce their carbon footprint, and invest in new solutions to thrive. Our Weather Collection provides you with critical insights to be prepared.

Workforce Resilience

Our Workforce Resilience collection gives you access to the latest insights from Aon's Human Capital team. You can reach out to the team at any time for questions about how we can assess gaps and help build a more resilience workforce.

More Like This

View All
View All
Subscribe CTA Banner