The pandemic, which has forced companies to change their business models and entrenched work from home as the norm, continues to increase the need for outsourced services, and thus the demand for those working in the field. Andžej Rynkevič, the head of the Lithuanian outsourcing company Baltic Virtual Assistants, says that the respective market will continue to grow and reveals that the company itself plans to double the number of employees within three years.

Growth of the outsourcing market is increasing the need for employees

The company started its operation as a start-up seven years ago and now provides services in over 50 countries and currently employs 170 people. The director of the company reveals that the company plans to double the number in the next three years.

“Last year we had a plan to hire 50 professionals from finance and other fields, we have achieved and significantly exceeded this target. Even though it is difficult to plan for more than half a year ahead under current circumstances, considering the development of projects in 2022 we have set ourselves a more ambitious target than last year, and we plan to double the current number of staff in three years and attract a total of around 150 new professionals“, said A. Rynkevič.

According to him, it is predicted that the global outsourcing market is likely to grow by 7 percent during the period of 2020-2024 or by more than 76 billion US dollars compared to the 2 percent growth that was recorded in 2016-2020.

“The growth of the market was determined by various factors: companies’ desire to cut costs and increase operational efficiency. Outsourcing services are often a solution for companies to find employees with certain skills that are not available inside the company, or as a way to delegate ancillary activities or functions to outsourced staff. The remote work model which has become a new norm has also undoubtedly contributed to the growth in demand for outsourced services”, the head of Baltic Virtual Assistants said, adding that some 60 percent of staff in the company have chosen the remote work option.

According to A. Rynkevič, the demand for outsourcing services is growing the most in IT and finance: “Global technological change in the field of digitization, data analytics, and artificial intelligence inevitably shape the need for professionals in certain fields, therefore financial data and content analysts, financial process automation specialists, financial, social media and digital marketing specialists, graphic designers, programmers are currently in high demand. There is also a rather high demand for outsourced services in areas such as engineering, management, marketing, or customer service.”

Don’t look for perfection

Rynkevič says that soft skills are becoming increasingly relevant for new employees, but the main criteria for future candidates remain the same as before, and among those are professional skills, English proficiency as well as ability to adapt to a rapidly changing environment, which has become even more important in the context of the pandemic. However, the expert points out that roughly 69 percent of organizations find it difficult to attract candidates who meet all the requirements of employers including the necessary knowledge and skills. For this reason, A. Rynkevič advises not to focus on finding the ‘perfect’ employees and rather look for the right personal qualities and skills as well as professional potential.

“When assessing candidates, we always strive to find people who would be in line with the company’s values and organizational culture, who were innovative and creative, knew their job, were willing to grow and improve and had ideas to share”, says the head of Baltic Virtual Assistants

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