LinkedIn Global Talent Trends report shows that hiring trends continue a stubborn downward trend and employee confidence in their careers are also generally trending negatively.
Job posts that mention AI and generative AI receive higher rates of job applications over those that do not.
The report emphasizes the importance talent acquisition efficiency and keeping an eye on employee retention strategies.
Worldwide Hiring Trends Continue To Decline
A sample of twenty countries shows that year over year hiring rates continue to decline.
However the rate of decline is less than the previous year, offering some hope that a positive trend may be just around the corner.
The data is interpreted by a LinkedIn analysis as an indication that employers are taking a cautious approach to hiring while evaluating how best to use and develop current talent.
Todd Friesen (LinkedIn profile), a digital marketing executive with over 20 years of experience who is a recent casualty of a round of layoffs shared what it’s like to be a job seeker today.
“The biggest problem job hunting right now is the incredible mismatch of job hunters to open positions, particularly at the senior level.
Thanks to the never-ending tech layoffs you routinely see job postings that show hundreds if not thousands of applicants the day after they launch.
Nobody is looking at all those resumes. Standing out in that crowd is nearly impossible.
You need a network and recommendations. The blind job application is practically doomed, compounded by the fact that there are less jobs available.”
According to LinkedIn’s chief economist Karin Kimbrough:
“I’m looking at this period as a gentle rebalancing in the labor market – meaning employers are hiring, but at a more cautious pace, and employees are staying put for longer.”
Jobs Mentioning AI Receive Greater Responses
Job posts on LinkedIn that mention AI or Generative AI received a 17% higher job application growth during the past two years over job posts that do not mention AI.
The LinkedIn report commented on what this means:
“As for the popularity of job posts mentioning AI, candidates are savvy.
They’re showing they want to go where opportunities are.
So I would consider it a requirement for most companies to share at least a basic roadmap of their AI strategy in job posts to keep up with the market.”
Rate Of Job Seeking Intensifies
Perhaps a reflection of the tighter labor market, a sample of eleven countries shows an increase in the rate at which job seekers have been applying for jobs.
LinkedIn published the following rates of change in year-over-year number of job applications filed by job seekers.
Increase In Rate Of Job Seekers Applying For Jobs
- United Kingdom +23%
- United States +18%
- France +17%
- Singapore +17%
- Australia +16%
- Germany +15%
- Netherlands +15%
- Canada +13%
- Italy +11%
- India +8%
- United Arab Emirates +4%
The LinkedIn analysis sees this as an intensification of job-seeking efforts.
These trends may be a signal that job seekers might want to consider putting their best effort into job applications and resumes (aka CV in the UK).
LinkedIn advises that talent acquisition teams need to focus on efficiency in this kind of job seeking market.
An analysis by the LinkedIn VP of Talent Acquisition, Erin Scruggs, suggests making sure the talent acquisition team is up for the challenge.
Erin Scruggs offered these thoughts:
“How do recruiters efficiently find the candidates who have the skills, knowledge, and motivations that match their company’s needs?
Hoping that hiring managers and interview teams know how to assess talent can be a losing strategy.
Educating and training will lead to the best outcomes.
I’d recommend that TA leaders take a magnifying glass to both their hiring principles and recruiting processes with an eye towards alignment and consistency across the organization.”
Career Development Confidence On A Downward Slope
Perhaps it shouldn’t be too surprising that worldwide career development confidence is generally trending downward in a year over year comparison.
That trend was not across the board, with Japan, Brazil and UK showing higher rates of career development confidence.
YOY Improvement in Career Development Confidence
- Japan +18
- Brazil +8
- UK +1
LinkedIn advised employers to help their employees visualize what their career prospects are at the company by helping them identify skills they want to learn and offer opportunities to acquire them.
Statistics published in the report show that companies that invest in career development have a 15% higher mobility rate within the organization.
LinkedIn advises:
“A first step is to show employees what career development at your company looks like – through any number of programs, like job shadowing, rotations, or sharing internal-mobility stories. This can both further personal career development and start to build organizational resilience and agility.”
Employee retention is recognized as important to an organization.
The Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) published the following reason why employee retention and development is important:
“By managing for employee retention, organizations will retain talented and motivated employees who want to be a part of the company and are focused on contributing to the organization’s overall success.
This leads to increased performance, productivity, employee morale, and quality of work, and reduces turnover and employee-related problems.”
Takeaways
The LinkedIn report documents a continued downward trend that appears to be slowing down. It highlights a gloomy outlook by currently employed on future career prospects within a company but even here it’s not a universally shared outlook because employees in some countries continue to have a positive outlook.
Job posts that mention AI tend to attract more applicants over those that don’t, perhaps reflecting current opinions that AI is the future of work.
LinkedIn recommends employers consider employee retention strategies and creating efficiency in talent acquistion.
Featured Image by Shutterstock/Roman Samborskyi
