TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – With many a miner’s focus firmly trained on cost cutting and productivity, companies must not neglect talent management, professional services firm EY said on Wednesday.

The end of the mining boom did not mean victory in the “war for talent”, according to a new report by EY, which said it was merely a “ceasefire” and companies had to remain focused on talent to reduce risks presented by more enduring trends.

“The war for talent just got a lot more complex. During the boom years, many mining companies hired talent at any cost. Now, as cost-cutting exercises mean there are fewer jobs to fill, the best people are able to cherry-pick the top roles in a global marketplace, as well as in other sectors. Now, more than ever, mining companies must not lose their focus on talent management,” EY Canadian mining and metals leader Bruce Sprague stressed.

EY’s report, ‘It is only a ceasefire – the war for talent will continue’, found that things such as an aging workforce, globalisation and disruptive technology were all affecting the future talent supply. Amid these trends, without a strong focus on talent management, companies stood to either lose wise, senior and experienced people from the sector, or to experience a significant talent shortage in the next upturn.

“In the past ten years, we’ve seen more semiskilled people in skilled roles. It’s not a sustainable way to resolve the labour productivity challenge. You can’t underestimate experience in this sector. It’s critical to have the right people in place who can lead projects based on first-hand experience,” Sprague noted.

According to EY, while labour productivity programmes were important, they had to focus on the acquisition, maintenance and optimisation of human capital.

“Companies must optimise their inventory of skills for their most valuable projects and implement robust people programmes. Retaining the right people is becoming a key competitive advantage in this sector,” Sprague pointed out.

EY’s report found that senior, experienced mining professionals were best positioned to lead the sector through this period of turbulence, because they possessed the right skills, deep knowledge of the mine and the sector and had “seen it all before”.

“The demand for this senior, experienced mining professional is growing. But the reality is that the supply is decreasing. Those companies that are innovative and flexible in how they effectively attract, retain and grow talent will be the ones to realise productivity gains now and position themselves to win in the next upturn,” Sprague argued.