According to a study by human resources firm Manpower titled “Shortage of Talent”, the difficulty of Costa Rican employers to fill the different vacancies in their companies has lowered from a 46% to a 35%; the average in the countries evaluated is of 40%, while in some countries like Colombia is close to 50%.

In general, the positions that are hard to fill have remained the same in the past eleven years, according to Ana Gabriela Chaverri, country manager for Manpower; although they vary a little from country to country; for instance, in Costa Rica, managerial positions were a difficult one to fill two years ago mainly because of the lack of soft skills such as leadership, communication and analysis; now this position is no longer appearing among the top ten of difficult vacancies to fill.

Currently the top ten difficult vacancies to fill for Costa Rican employers are:

1. Technicians: “We have over overrated the importance of having a bachelor’s degree, a university degree, when in reality professionals at a technical level and specialized technicians is what the market is demanding”.
2. Sales Representatives
3. Information Technology (IT) professionals
4. Certified technicians
5. Engineers
6. Secretaries, personal assistants, administrative assistants and office support personnel.
7. Machinery operators
8. Accounting personnel
9. Drivers
10. Construction workers

Mónica Flores, regional president of Manpower, considers that part of the problem obeys to the fact that the education is falling behind in relation to the speed in which the markets change and advance, leaving a gap between the companies’ needs and what the market offers.

National companies are adopting different strategies to promote the development and training of their personnel and include different benefits for employees to help motivate their staff in acquiring new skills.