The majority, or 76%, of employers in the UK are turning to the temporary market to aid their digital transformation efforts, according to research from Robert Half.

For employers, the temporary recruitment market can be an effective way of mitigating skills shortages while targeting candidates with highly specialised or niche skill sets such as technological understanding and change management.

“Digital transformation is one of the most challenging business projects facing employers,” Robert Half stated. “At a time when many are struggling to hire the right calibre of candidate to help them close the digital skills gap within their organisation, many business leaders are needing to turn to contract or temporary professionals to fill the need.”

Robert Half’s research showed that 70% of employers agree that a combination of permanent, interim and temporary employees is most successful when trying to implement digital transformation initiatives.

These employees can be used in different ways with the research showing that 74% of them use experienced interim professionals to transfer knowledge and upskill existing teams, while a further 75% use them to manage specific digital transformation initiatives or projects within their organisation.

Such professionals are however in high demand, leading many employers to struggle to find the right candidates. Seven in ten, or 71%, admitted that it was challenging to find experienced interim staff for digital transformation initiatives.

For candidates with in-demand skill sets, temporary and interim roles can allow them to maintain flexibility and the choice of project or programme of work.

As such, an increasing proportion of the UK’s temporary workers are doing so out of choice, with recent Office for National Statistics data showing less than 25% doing so because they could not find a full-time position, the lowest level in nearly 13 years.

Matt Weston, Managing Director of Robert Half UK, commented: “Digitalisation is transforming the workplace at a rapid pace. Employers continue to turn to the temporary market in an effort to rectify the lack of digital knowledge in their company. Experienced interim workers have the potential to manage digital transformation projects, often upskilling existing staff in the process.”

“Tapping into the temporary market to access niche skill sets is not easy and with potentially increasing competition based on whether an assignment will fall inside or outside of IR35, there could be likely rebalancing on the most competitive rates being offered and paid to secure top contract staff,” Weston said.