Hiring With 20/20 Vision | The 2020 Job Market And What To Look Out For

2020 is swiftly approaching. People are getting their turkeys together for Thanksgiving, families are getting their Christmas trees and ornaments ready for the holidays, and consumers are anxiously waiting in preparation for Black Friday and the holiday sales season. Yet, aside from all the fun and magic that happens around this time of year, this also marks the end of the year for hiring in 2019, and recruiters and hiring managers already have their eyes locked in on what to see and expect in the job market in the year 2020.

Let’s take a look back and reflect on what we’ve seen this year.

2019 saw a tough climate for hiring. We compiled a list of some of the most common trends reported for the year.

• Hiring managers are determined to find candidates that meet all of their qualifications.
• There’s an increase in jobs offering flexible work hours and casual dress to appeal to candidates.
• Companies are placing a bigger focus on company culture when onboarding new hires and trying to emphasize company perks.
• There is a decrease and a slower overall pace in hiring in 2019, particularly late 2019.
• Candidates are receiving more competitive offers and have more options to consider.
• There’s an increase in remote positions.
• Companies are looking to hire more diverse candidates.
• Jobs are conducting longer interview processes with more than one interview and interviewer involved.
• Having experience in technology makes a candidate more appealing in the job market.
• There is a high demand for tech jobs.

Now, let’s take a look at this article from Jobbatical on current 2019 hiring statistics, job market trends and data.

• A total of 31% of recruiters list the quality of the hire as the measurement of their success, while 23% of recruiters consider the retention rate as their primary measurement. One- to three business days are dedicated to training prospective hires by 39% of recruiters in order to improve the retention rate.
• It takes an average of 27 working days to acquire a new hire.
• Of recruiters, 45% are having difficulty filling positions due to a shortage of talent.
• At least 84% of organizations are currently using social media for recruitment and 9% of those who don’t use it yet are planning to.
• Requirements for strong conversational skills and enthusiasm have declined by more than 20% among recruiters.
• A four-year college degree makes an entry-level candidate competitive in the job market according to 87% of recruiters.
• Video technology is being used by 60% of hiring managers and recruiters. A survey of 506 companies showed 47% use video interviewing to shorten the hiring timeframe, and 22% would consider it for interviewing candidates that aren’t local.
• Through recruiter negotiations, 68% of businesses “have increased the average salary offer for candidates in the last year.”
• 75% of recruiters have experienced a candidate “change their mind.” In 53% of the cases, it was because they received a better offer.
• Reportedly, 77% of recruiters go back and hire someone who didn’t appear to be a fit initially.

Let’s take it a step further by looking back to 2018.

• In 2018, on average, 12% of candidates who applied for jobs were asked for an interview. Out of those interviewed, 28% received a job offer. (Jobvite 2019 Recruiting Benchmark Report)
• Recruiters estimate they will pay entry-level employees an average of $56,532 in 2019 and 2020—a jump of over $10,000 compared to 2018
• The average time to fill a position was 40 days in 2018 (Jobvite)
• 91% of tech companies planned to invest in sourcing tools and technology in 2018 (Entelo 2018 Recruiting Trends Report)
• Channels such as Facebook and Instagram, are gaining popularity in recruitment. Especially Instagram: 35% of millennial recruiters and 63% of recruiters working in the tech industry used Instagram to source candidates in 2018—double the numbers from the previous year (Jobvite)

Based on stats and trends from the previous and current year, here are five key things we’ve noticed.

1. There’s an undeniable shift towards tech in hiring and recruiting and more candidates are expected to have skills in tech.
2. Candidates are being offered more money than previous years as a result of a shortage in talent and an increase in competition.
3. Fewer and fewer candidates are receiving job offers.
4. The use of social media is exponentially growing in the recruitment world.
5. More hiring tactics such as video interviewing and companies using more interviewers to interview candidates.

So, what can we and what do we expect to see in the 2020 job market when hiring? Here are some “optical predictions” of what we might see.

Optical Predictions for 2020

• If there is an economic downturn, there will be fewer open positions in the job market.
• Hiring managers may be able to become even more picky about the candidates they hire with.
• Companies will preach diversity more to their candidates.
• There will be more remote positions and companies will offer more remote/flex hours.
• 50% of the job market will consist of Millennials.
• Increased use of social media resources for recruitment.
• Environmental education/experience being sought after.
• Social media could be used more like a job board.
• Bigger candidate pools because of more ability to reach national/international candidates.
• Large corporations will continue to get bigger and bigger and smaller/mid-sized growing companies will be appealing to candidates, specifically at the management level where they can have a large scope rather than segmented.
• Job descriptions will implement more tech requirements and companies will market themselves as having a tech-savvy environment.
• Candidates want jobs with more benefit options (paternity leave, longer paid maternity leave, IVF options, etc.).
• Candidates want companies to offer more leadership training.
• Jobs will conduct more interview processes will be conducted virtually or through automated video recordings that will be done at more convenient times.
• There will be a stronger emphasis on employee progression.

Tackling The Job Market With A Hawk Eye 

In order to be successful in the 2020 job market, there will have to be a strong emphasis on finding new ways to attract the top talent in the market. The company that is open-minded in its hiring approach will be the company that will come out on top in acquiring top talent in the 2020 job market. Even in a time where there’s an evident shortage of talent, tackling the market with a hawk’s eye and changing your recruitment process by taking a flexible approach to recruiting can have a positive impact on your recruitment team’s efforts.