Thailand 2030 : Turning vision into reality with a qualified workforce

Huneety is a regional HRtech startup headquartered in Bangkok, founded by two French entrepreneurs, Simon Carvi, Co-Founder & CEO, and Vianney d’Hostel, Co-Founder & COO. The name "Huneety" is a fusion of "H" representing Humans and the term "Unity." The company has been created in late 2021 in response to the acute talent shortage in Southeast Asia, a phenomenon expected to intensify over the next decade.

Huneety's mission is to support organizations in navigating the skills and talent shortage within Southeast Asia’s B2B and industrial sectors. Thanks to its talent matching platform, the company envisions deliver new talent pools of qualified individuals to ensure industrial organizations have the necessary skills to align with Thailand's 2030 development objectives.

This article goes through the primary objectives of Thailand 2030 and Industry 4.0 industries, examining the talent challenges and barriers associated with achieving these goals.

I. 2030: Fulfilling Thailand 4.0 expectations

The Thailand 4.0 initiative is the government's recent economic strategy aimed at transforming the country into a high-income nation, with a focus on robots and digital technologies leading the way. Despite its launch in 2016, the project still lacks comprehensiveness to meet the development objectives that were set.

Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has unveiled Thailand Vision 2030, underlining the nation's dedication to becoming a global industrial hub and promoting a sustainable economy. This vision serves as a continuation of the Thailand 4.0 industrialization project, aiming to transition Thailand into a hub for heavy industry and technology.

The Prime Minister's vision encompasses various sectors, including tourism, wellness and medical, food, aviation, future automotive manufacturing, technology, and finance. The ultimate goal is to position Thailand prominently on the world stage as a key player in these industries.

II. Turning Vision into Reality: Thailand's 2030 Industrial Objectives

Thailand as a world Agriculture Food Hub : Thailand is strategically positioning itself in Asia's food industry to meet the challenges of a global population reaching 10 billion by 2050. The country plans to oversee the entire food production process, investing in high-protein plant-based foods and innovative alternatives. The goal is to become a global kitchen, leveraging geographical advantages and addressing various challenges. Initiatives include tripling Thai farmers' income, ensuring land and water fertility, expanding irrigation, and supporting global market access for agricultural products. Thailand is actively researching high-protein plant-based and innovative foods, with a focus on enhancing food quality and promoting global expansion of Thai restaurants, aiming to be a significant player in the global food industry.

Aviation Hub : The vision of the Thai government focuses on developing infrastructure and transportation systems domestically and internationally. The aim is to capitalize on Thailand’s geographical advantages such as its sizable population and tourism-friendly environment. The plan includes expanding airports to facilitate airline transit, adjusting routes and flight schedules for increased capacity, and establishing home bases in both primary and secondary cities. The government also aims to enhance airport infrastructure, including runways, control towers, and warehouses, and implement a controlled temperature cargo transportation system (Cold Chain). The initiative also involves creating the region's largest maintenance and repair center, expected to boost growth in various sectors such as services, transportation, hotels, tourism, and agricultural product exports to global markets.The goal is to become a hub for both Thai and international airlines, with improved security checks and service quality.

Logistics Hub: The Thai government aims to boost transportation capacity domestically and internationally, expanding economic opportunities beyond major cities. Plans involve upgrading airports, roads, and the national highway system, with the Motorway expanding from 250 to 2,500 kilometers. High-speed trains will connect airports, extend to the Nong Khai border, and link deep-sea ports at Laem Chabang. The objective is to establish Thailand as an ASEAN transportation hub, connecting China, Europe, and serving as a global trade hub.

Future Mobility and EV Manufacturing: The Thai government aims to establish Thailand as a Future Mobility Hub for automotive production, targeting investments exceeding 1 trillion baht. Discussions with over 10 companies have resulted in commitments to invest over 150 billion baht in the country. The automotive sector's growth has attracted Japanese companies, considering Thailand as their second home, together with Kia and Tesla in discussion to produce their electric cars and battery production in Thailand. With the industry's shift towards electric vehicles (EVs), Thailand is well-prepared across the entire supply chain. The government plans a comprehensive promotion of the EV industry, creating a complete domestic ecosystem, with support extended to Japanese companies.

Essential roles to meet Thailand industrial development objectives

To achieve its vision, Thailand must equip itself with the right generation of workers capable of fulfilling its objectives. Meeting its industrial goals requires a supply of qualified talents in the following areas of expertise:

Industrial & Automation:

Industrial & manufacturing engineers
Control systems engineers
Robotics automation engineers
PLC engineers

Engineers:

Chemical engineers
Civil engineers
Electrical engineers
Mechanical engineers
Food technologists

Service & Maintenance:

Field Service engineers
Maintenance engineers
Reliability engineers

Quality Control:

Quality assurance engineers and controllers
Inspection technicians

Sustainability:

Environmental compliance officers
Sustainability specialists and managers

Skilled Operators:

Welders
Manufacturing operators

III. Thailand talent shortage is hampering growth

Thailand is grappling with a significant labor shortage, posing challenges across various industries. Key sectors like agriculture and manufacturing particularly affected, with businesses struggling to find enough qualified personnel to meet demand. The shortage appears to be one of the most important barrier preventing Thailand to acheive 2030 ambitions.

Here are the main causes of Thailand talent shortage:

Aging Society

Thailand's population is rapidly aging, leading to the imminent retirement of the "baby boomers" generation, resulting in the disappearance of skilled workers that may be challenging to replace. Simultaneously, this void provides opportunities for millennials and digital natives to swiftly assume leadership positions, advocating for the modernization of Thai corporations.

According to the latest World Bank study, the share of the population aged 65 or older is expected to increase from 13% in 2020 to 31% by 2060, ranking as the 22nd largest globally. This aging process is occurring rapidly, with the 65-plus population in Thailand doubling between 2000 and 2020, projected to double again by 2040, reaching 26% of the population.

Technology & Automation

Thailand is on track to lose as many as three million jobs over the next 20 years if it fails to adapt to new disruptive technologies, according to the Thailand Development Research Institute (TDRI). The biggest casualties as a result of the introduction of automation and robotics would be unskilled workers, as their jobs are frequently among the first to be automated.

Unsuitable vocational training

At the same time, the education system has been struggling for a long time to provide the new talents needed to fill the positions available. Vocational Education sector in Thailand faces significant challenges that hinder its effectiveness and reputation. The scarcity of skilled labor and the shortage of qualified VET teachers amount to a gap between workforce skills and industry requirements, impacting the fulfillment of market demands, and compromising the quality of education

In addition, nearly 1.4 million (or 15 %) youth aged 15-24 years in Thailand are Not in Employment, Education, or Training (NEET). A new Unicef-led study released in early 2024 finds most of them (68 %) lack the motivation to develop skills or work due to a perceived lack of opportunities.

IV. The forecasted outcomes of Thailand talent shortage

Higher cost of hire and payroll increase due to talent war

As talent pools becomes narrower, cost of salaries of skilled workers will naturally increase. According to Dhritiman Chakrabarti, Korn Ferry Head of Rewards and Benefits for the APAC region Skilled workers' salaries may sharply rise, adding over US$1 trillion to Asia-Pacific's annual payrolls by 2030, risking company profitability and business models. In Thailand, the worker shortage could cost an additional $27 billion by 2025, and $34 billion by 2030. Dhritiman Chakrabarti emphasizes the scarcity of skills, stating that the new work era faces an abundance of people but insufficient skills for organizational survival.

Increased time to hire

Organizations, grappling with talent shortages and the need for specific industry skills, are caught in an intensified "Talent War." This competition among employers for the same candidates adversely affects the organization's bottom line, leading to negative externalities. The heightened competition results in extended recruitment periods, impacting productivity and growth. In specialized areas for white-collar workers, the average time to hire is 75 days, and this turnaround time may further increase due to the talent shortage.

V. Huneety solution to address the talent shortage

Huneety platform makes use of A.I and machine learning to ensure companies can tap into a qualified supply of talents. Huneety also relies on a competency evaluation system in order to gauge the skills suitability for each role. In doing so, the company aims at providing more career paths opportunities to job seekers by suggesting roles within across industries, leverage the skills suitability of each individual.

Considering industry overlaps to find the right qualified talent pool

Huneety platform helps to identify suitable industries which overlaps with the skills required to fill roles, hence creating new talent pools of qualified talents.

Exploring overlapping industries for talent acquisition can bring diverse skills, fresh perspectives, and a competitive advantage to companies. Companies that are considering candidates from overlapping industries are able to broaden their talent pool, enhance innovation, and promote adaptability. This approach allows companies to tap into a diverse talent base and uncover qualified talents.

The following interactive graph presents the porosity of each industry regarding Service engineers hiring.

Identifying transferable skills to find talents

Candidates with transferable skills can apply their abilities to different jobs or industries. Transferable skills are like special abilities that you can carry with you from one job to another, regardless of the specific tasks or duties. Huneety platform apprehends the relationship between skills and job opportunities in order to match candidates to opportunities. This approach widens the pool of potential hires and allows recruiters to identify individuals who can quickly adapt to new environments, learn new tasks, and bring fresh perspectives to the team.

The interactive chart above highlights the transferable skills of the service engineer.

De-bias hiring initiatives to unlock diversity

Thailand is currently ranked 75th out of 153 countries in the World Economic Forum’s 2020 Global Gender Gap Report. Women face challenges in securing senior managerial positions, unless they are involved in their own family-owned businesses. Additionally, discrimination against senior executives is expected to increase with the aging population trend. Leveraging these untapped talent pools is crucial to ensuring the country remains competitive and productive. Huneety adopts an objective approach to hiring, utilizing proprietary assessments to evaluate suitability for roles before the initial interview with hiring managers. This method has proven to be especially useful in overcoming bias and relying on objective information for each hire.

Click here to know more about the science behind Huneety assessments

Hire for soft skills when technical skills are scarce

Huneety moto is “Hire for behaviors, train for skills”. When technical skills are scarce in the labor market, companies will fight over the same talent pool. Placing the emphasis on soft skills allow organizations to acquire a workforce that is agile and that matches its behavior and culture fit requirements.

Click here to know more about why soft skills are required in recruitment.

Upskilling, training and requalifying the workforce

As part of its vision to expand opportunities for career growth, Huneety has integrated into its roadmap a learning opportunity generator linked to the skills required for both current and future roles. This learning opportunity generator will suggest free learning opportunities available online to upskill the workforce and facilitate career transitions. Combined with its platform evaluation system, such integration shall facilitate faster ramp-ups to current roles, enhancing productivity, and smoother transitions to future jobs.

About Huneety

Huneety is Southeast Asia's talent-matching platform for the B2B and industrial sector. Our mission is to address the talent shortage by connecting qualified individuals to job opportunities, leveraging our proprietary AI matching algorithm and skills assessments.

As part of its vision to address talent shortages, Huneety aims to make HR technologies accessible and affordable for Southeast Asian organizations.

The Huneety Platform & Services Include:

Contact us to get to know more information