Strengthening Human Capital Strategies to Attract Talent in the Food, Agribusiness and Beverage Industry

Strengthening Human Capital Strategies to Attract Talent in the Food, Agribusiness and Beverage Industry
November 13, 2024 11 mins

Strengthening Human Capital Strategies to Attract Talent in the Food, Agribusiness and Beverage Industry

Strengthening Human Capital Strategies to Attract Talent in the Food, Agribusiness and Beverage Industry

Learn how strong human capital strategies can help recruit, retain and motivate vital talent in a competitive and evolving job market.

Key Takeaways
  1. Advancements in digitalization and AI, evolving stakeholder expectations and regulatory changes are fundamentally shaping the talent profile of the food, agribusiness and beverage industry.
  2. Revised human capital strategies help organizations attract and retain a new generation of more diverse, highly specialized talent to strengthen their competitive advantage.
  3. Taking a future-focused approach to talent and embracing innovative human capital strategies will help the industry revitalize its reputation as a rewarding career choice.

Business is booming in the food, agribusiness and beverage (FAB) industry, with the global market expected to increase from $6.5 trillion in 2023 to around $8.8 trillion by 2028.1 However, building this level of growth hinges on the availability and commitment of skilled workforces.

Human capital challenges continue to disrupt operations and long-term growth strategies in the FAB industry. As technological advancements reshape the sector, regulations tighten and employee demands shift, organizations are finding it harder and harder to find, attract and retain the talent they need.

One of the fundamental challenges in recruitment is the perceived attractiveness of the industry. FAB businesses must go beyond pay and use creativity to leverage benefit strategies and better communicate their values and culture. Doing so will revitalize the reputation of an industry brimming with rewarding career opportunities.

Critical Recruitment Challenges

Digitalization and increased volatility are reshaping the FAB industry landscape. As business operations rapidly evolve to keep pace with these changes, so too do the skills requirements of employees across organizations.

At a manufacturing level, labor shortages have been a perennial and well-publicized issue for the industry. In the UK alone, these shortages were estimated to cost the sector £1.4 billion in 2022 due to loss of output.2 Reliance on costly temporary workers increases risks for FAB organizations, impacting everything — from training budgets to food safety concerns and supply chain disruptions. For some roles, retention is even more critical.

Specialized Skills

As manufacturing processes become more complex, the availability of a localized workforce with specialized maintenance skills is vital. The bespoke and highly technical nature of equipment and machinery used within the industry makes retaining people with institutional knowledge critical to success. An inability to successfully fill these roles can threaten production, increasing the risk of supply chain disruptions and reputational damage.

26%

Global employment in agriculture dropped from 44 percent in 1991 to 26 percent in 2022.

Source: Employment in agriculture (% of total employment), International Labour Organization, 2022

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Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence (AI) is bringing unprecedented opportunities for growth and innovation to the FAB industry and its momentum is only anticipated to grow. Food safety and quality monitoring, supply chain optimization, precision agriculture and product development innovation are just some of the areas benefiting from AI. Increased digitalization is not only revolutionizing the FAB industry, but also reshaping the talent profile of organizations. However, as the demand for digital talent increases across all industries, so too does the competitive landscape for digital talent in the FAB sector — a critical risk companies face.

At a leadership level, the talent landscape is equally competitive, pushing up the cost of compensation packages and lengthening the time it takes to hire new leaders.

Regulatory Changes

Regulatory or legislative changes are a top ten business risk for the FAB industry.3 The volume of regulation and disclosure requirements demands roles with specialist skills and knowledge to understand the data requirements, ensure compliance and manage messaging to external stakeholders.

Against increased volatility and the implications of industry digitalization, finding bold leaders with the vision to drive innovation and the ability to navigate evolving risks will be essential for FAB businesses to thrive in the years ahead.

Rewriting the Narrative

When it comes to perceived attitudes about careers in FAB, the sector suffers from an image problem that has hampered the recruitment of younger generations. For example, within agriculture in Europe, almost 60 percent of farm managers were 55 years or older, with people 40 years or younger making up just 12 percent of these roles.4

Revising human capital strategies to strengthen employer reputations can help FAB organizations increase their appeal to a younger and more diverse talent pool. It can also better communicate the rewarding, viable and stable career opportunities available within the industry.

$180B

AI food and beverage market predicted to surpass $180 billion by 2032.

Source: Global Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Food and Beverage Market, Astute Analytica, 2024

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Here are some ways to improve perceptions and reputations of the FAB sector:

  • Make an Impact That Matters to Employees

    Concerns about the impacts of business operations on society and the environment are driving a new generation of employee expectations. Organizations should prepare for a rise in employees researching a brand’s environmental impact and policies before accepting a job. Value-driven employees are increasingly looking to their current or future employer to demonstrate a meaningful commitment to sustainability, which offers a significant opportunity for FAB businesses to fulfill.

    Despite food production accounting for over a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions,5 the industry is uniquely positioned as a catalyst and leader for positive change. By embracing sustainable practices and technologies, FAB organizations can demonstrate positive action toward innovative sustainability solutions and offer employees the opportunity to be part of something meaningful. Purpose-driven work results in a more engaged workforce that feels better-connected to a company's mission and values.

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  • Communicate Opportunities for Career Development

    Within the industry, several large multinationals have benefited from establishing their own corporate academies. Covering a comprehensive breadth of skills, from leadership to technical development, these programs are designed to provide consistent training standards, identify and nurture talent, and foster a culture of learning across the organizations.

    Businesses that can proactively develop talent pipelines not only help build organizational resilience, but also strengthen their ability to attract and retain talent in a competitive landscape. Offering valuable opportunities to build skills and knowledge across a broad range of specialties empowers employees to follow established career paths and provides the flexibility to transfer into other industries or careers.

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  • Identify Pathways to Enable People to Blend Family and Work Life

    When talent competition is so fierce, businesses simply cannot afford to lose good people. Yet, when employees expand their families or take on additional caring roles that demand greater flexibility, many are forced out of an industry that often struggles to adapt to these needs. Similarly, many roles within the FAB sector often demand a level of physicality that not all employees can deliver.

    Building a culture of mobility across organizations and identifying pathways and roles to which employees can bring transferable skills helps create a dynamic and adaptable workforce. Organizations will be better positioned to retain valuable people, while strengthening individuals' sense of feeling valued by their employers.

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  • Use Captives to Enhance Workforce Diversity

    Captives are a well-established tool to help businesses manage their financial risks, lowering costs and giving organizations greater control and flexibility over their risk management decisions. However, captives can also be critical in supporting and strengthening human capital strategies.

    Unlike traditional insurance coverages, captives allow organizations to alter terms that can create a more inclusive range of benefits, for example, by removing exclusions for specific groups or expanding definitions of dependents. In a competitive landscape, the ability to attract people who may have otherwise dismissed a role in the industry can widen talent pools, increase organizational diversity, and foster a more inclusive and innovative operating environment.

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  • Don’t Disregard Flexible Working Models

    Unlike other industries, the FAB sector has struggled to implement the same levels of flexibility in employee working arrangements. Constrained by operational challenges, flexible and hybrid working models have become more complex to implement.

    However, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, employees across the board are increasingly demanding flexible working opportunities, with studies suggesting that greater flexibility improves job satisfaction and reduces attrition rates by one-third.6 While 35 percent of FAB organizations in a global Aon study had established practices for flexible working to drive their recruitment strategies, the majority of the industry is still in the early stages of this journey or has yet to start.7 A failure to keep pace with other industries on this issue will become a critical challenge for FAB businesses against the fierce competition for talent across the global jobs market.

    Some organizations within the industry are using innovative models and advancements in scheduling technology to increase workplace flexibility, benefitting both the employer and employees. Greater experimentation and sector collaboration within this space could yield positive results in terms of recruitment and retention for the industry as a whole.

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  • Attract Employees and Optimize Spend with Well-Structured Benefit Programs

    Every employee is an individual with unique priorities, concerns and aspirations. It's why benefits should be personal too, with the ability to adapt to the nuances of local markets. While trying to enable flexibility, one in three multinational organizations is currently drafting and articulating global benefit strategies,8 indicating a significant shift toward the implementation of global minimum standards for benefit programs.

    However, failure to implement strategy at a local level can lead to an inconsistent employee experience. For FAB businesses operating globally, it is critical that benefits are tailored to local needs, particularly as healthcare costs surge. Flexible plans not only give employees defined funds to design and finance a benefit package based on personal needs, but they also help organizations drive value, simplify choice and optimize spending.

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  • Strengthen Employee Engagement with a Technology-Enabled Human Capital Management Strategy

    As employee benefit expectations continue to expand, the need for a highly personalized, simple and engaging digital benefit experience gains importance. While businesses state that employee perception and understanding of benefits are high priorities, Aon’s research has uncovered that many efforts are underwhelming, uncoordinated and ineffective. Only 33 percent of businesses include guidelines on communication in their global benefit framework.9

    Choosing an online benefit platform that leverages predictive analytics and generative AI helps organizations better understand the needs of their employees, and provides a more personalized and compelling experience. App-enabled platforms drive significant business impact by enabling the employer to overcome geographical and locational challenges. For the first time, employers can communicate catered messages directly with individual employees, utilizing hyper-personalized approaches to deliver the right message at the right time to the right person.

    Learn more

  • Leverage Pay Transparency to Promote a Culture of Equity

    As pay transparency regulation tightens and demands greater clarity around organizations’ pay practices, potential and existing employees will feel more empowered to make informed career decisions.

    A perceived or real issue surrounding pay transparency can create significant reputational and legal challenges for organizations, potentially damaging their ability to hire and retain vital talent. However, pay transparency also opens the door to opportunities, helping to increase equality, improve diversity, equity and inclusion, and be a positive driver of retention and culture.

    Learn more

The FAB industry faces significant and unique challenges in recruiting and retaining the top talent needed to mitigate escalating risks and capitalize on emerging growth opportunities. However, as the sector finds itself at a critical evolution point, it is also brimming with opportunities. The key to success lies in better understanding employees' needs and better communicating the fulfilling, rewarding and career-advancing opportunities that exist within the sector.

With a future-focused approach to talent strategy and by leveraging innovative human capital solutions and strengthening organizational culture, FAB businesses can revitalize their reputation and gain the skilled workforce necessary to drive future success.

Aon’s Thought Leaders
  • Ciara Jackson
    Global Food, Agribusiness and Beverage Leader, Enterprise Client Group
  • Marinus van Driel
    Partner, Workforce Transformation Advisory, North America

1 Food and Beverage Global Report 2024, The Business Research Company
2 Labour shortages are stifling economic growth for the UK’s food and drink producers, Food & Drink Federation
3 Top Risks Facing Food, Agribusiness and Beverage Organizations, Aon
4 Farmers and the agricultural labour force - statistics, Eurostat
5 Environmental Impacts of Food Production, Our World in Data
6 Hybrid working from home improves retention without damaging performance, Nature
7 Global Risk Management Survey, Aon
8 2024 Global Benefits Trends Study, Aon
9 Ibid.

General Disclaimer

This document is not intended to address any specific situation or to provide legal, regulatory, financial, or other advice. While care has been taken in the production of this document, Aon does not warrant, represent or guarantee the accuracy, adequacy, completeness or fitness for any purpose of the document or any part of it and can accept no liability for any loss incurred in any way by any person who may rely on it. Any recipient shall be responsible for the use to which it puts this document. This document has been compiled using information available to us up to its date of publication and is subject to any qualifications made in the document.

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