Skills Shortages in the Renewable Energy Sector
Recent changes in Government policy and the knowledge of consumers surrounding the threat of global warming, from greenhouse gas emissions, has lead to the renewable energy industry experiencing real growth. The industry is growing so fast that organisations are finding it hard to appoint sufficient high calibre senior management to run their growing operations. This demand has led to many renewable energy organisations turning to headhunting firms to attract the best executives.
The energy sector as a whole has an ageing workforce which has serious implications for the future. Historically scientific, engineering and technical skills were in high supply as this career path was pushed at schools, universities and through apprenticeships. Since the 1980s large scale automation and a decline in the numbers studying this path has lead to smaller numbers of people entering the industry.
Each year there are huge numbers of people retiring from the energy industry, and there is a lack of experienced professionals for key roles. Within the next 5-10 years around 25 per cent of the industries most experienced and senior engineers will retire and there is an insufficient amount of talent to meet the challenges of this expanding industry.
Within the "next generation" of talent there is a shortage of individuals gaining scientific, engineering and technical skills and for those who are gaining the skills there is strong competition from other industries. This is resulting in an ever decreasing pool of individuals available to the energy industry.
Recruitment is not usually a problem within the renewable sector as people want to work in this area, however it is the speed at which the sector is growing and the lack of specific skills that creates problems. There are concerns by industry executives that the shortage of high level engineering skills could slow the rate of investment in new schemes.
George Woodward, Director at Novo Executive Search and Selection says, "We have witnessed a five fold increase in the number of clients within the renewable energy sector over the past twelve months. We are retained for several key business areas within the sector including project development, engineering, construction and operation and maintenance. The roles we are retained for have specific skill requirements, making them difficult roles to fill using the traditional methods of recruitment. Executive search locates key individuals that would not necessarily be looking to make a career move.
"We currently represent companies within many areas of renewable energy including, bio-energy, wave and tidal energy and wind generation. Each company that retain our services has specific needs with regards to the position and we work hard to understand these requirements to find the best high calibre people to fit their business."
Executive search has historically been regarded as the method of choice to recruit senior executives at £100k salary levels and above. For roles between £50k and £100k many companies have historically used the services of contingency recruitment agencies or used advertising to attract candidates. However skill shortages and increased competition have lead to companies utilising executive search consultancies successfully at the £50k to £100k levels.
"The finest candidates for the position will often be satisfied in their current job, this satisfaction will deter them from looking elsewhere for a new position. The role of a successful headhunter is to identify these individuals and approach them with the client's opportunity."
Case Study
Energy Power Resources (EPRL) is just one of the companies within the renewable energy industry that have retained the headhunting services of Novo Executive Search and Selection. EPRL is one of the leading renewable energy providers in the UK and has experienced large growth both in the UK and Europe. With the growth of its European operations, language was increasingly becoming a problem, so EPRL asked Novo to find a tri-lingual project manager, based in France or Germany to act as an interface between EPRL, EPC and O & M contractors and intermediaries.
With the support of Novo Executive Search and Selection, the appropriate recruitment methodology was selected and a strong candidate was identified. Recruiting this candidate on a local French contract meant EPRL needed to set up a French entity to employ this local individual operating under French employment law. The added foresight and commitment from the CEO to invest in this way meant that they were able to secure this quality candidate to strengthen their team.
Eddie Wilkinson, CEO of EPRL says, "This was the fifth senior manager recruitment undertaken by Novo on behalf of EPRL in a relatively short space of time as we expand our management capabilities. Each time the process has been smooth and in each case the eventual successful candidate had hit the ground running and made a positive impact on the business. The European Project Manager role was a difficult one to fill but again Novo's knowledge and processes have helped to find the right candidate."
Over the past twelve months Novo have successfully filled a selection of positions within the renewable energy sector including, engineering directors for a wave and tidal company and production and plant managers for a leading biomass company. With each new role within the renewable energy sector, Novo are looking for new skills sets and with fears that engineering, scientific and technical expertise diverting to high profile construction projects, it is vital to attract and retain the best individuals into the renewable energy sector.
George Woodward comments, "The renewable energy industry is growing so fast that we have set up a specialist group at Novo Executive Search and Selection that deal with finding the best individuals for our clients within the sector. This group can look for candidates for any of the generation types, and our in-house research team work hard to find the best people to match client specifications. We are gaining a reputation across this industry for high quality candidate shortlists, excellent placement success rates and clients who are committing to our services again and again."
With Government targets for renewable energy set at 10% of all UK energy generation by 2010, the problem with senior recruitment will increase as the sector grows. The near future for the renewables industry is uncertain as large volumes of experienced engineers and technical staff take retirement. Graduates entering the market are also being lured away from the sector with attractive packages from projects like the 2012 Olympics and demands of developers in emerging economies including India and China.
Universities are attempting to halt this emigration from the sector by offering MSc courses on areas such as Renewable Energy Systems Technology and Renewable Energy and Resources Management. This investment and commitment from educational institutions in the UK will provide a greater skills base within the sector for the future.
Senior recruitment within the renewable energy sector and indeed energy industry as a whole is expected to be challenging in the near future. The need for more pro-active recruitment techniques will be required as the market becomes narrower.
George Woodward is a Director of Novo Executive Search and Selection.
Email: george.woodward@novoexec.com
