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Executive Summary
Preferred Supplier Lists (PSL) are built to make infrastructure recruitment more efficient. For most workforce requirements, compliance is managed, routine roles are filled, and the supply chain is maintained. But they can struggle when infrastructure projects demand rapid mobilisation, specialist skills, or when the workforce becomes scarce in difficult labour markets.
A smaller proportion of roles repeatedly go unfilled across the infrastructure PSL frameworks. And it is precisely these roles that determine whether a project is delivered on time, safely, and within budget. This is not a new challenge in infrastructure recruitment, and in these circumstances, even well-established PSL suppliers may struggle to respond quickly enough.
The question worth asking is: Does your current workforce supply chain consistently deliver workforce certainty, or does it only perform when requirements are straightforward?
Throwing Down the Gauntlet: Why the Final 20% of Workforce Supply Determines Project Success
Drawing on decades of experience delivering workforce solutions across UK rail, construction, highways and energy, MSS Infrastructure (MSSI) examines:
- Why the Parato Principle consistently emerges in infrastructure PSL frameworks, and what it means for hiring outcomes
- The specific conditions under which even strong PSL suppliers cannot respond quickly enough
- The real cost of the workforce gaps
- How to assess whether your current supply chain is resilient enough for specialist and urgent requirements
- What proactive workforce planning looks like
This whitepaper is written for procurement leads, operations directors, and project delivery teams in infrastructure and construction who rely on a Preferred Supplier List to deliver workforce supply and are experiencing the cost of roles that repeatedly go unfilled.
If your current PSL consistently delivers every requirement, every time, there may be little reason to change. But if specialist roles are staying open too long, mobilisation is delayed, supplier performance is uneven, or safety and compliance pressure is rising, this white paper sets out exactly why that happens and what to do about it.
