Early career job seekers and hiring managers expect different outcomes from the hiring process, drawing a disparity between companies’ immediate hiring needs and workers’ desires for long-term growth, according to a Nov. 13 report from Talogy, a global talent management firm.
While companies seemed more focused on filling urgent gaps, the vast majority of job candidates said they’re increasingly looking for higher salaries and opportunities for learning and development, the report found.
“Following the Great Resignation, there is a lot of competition for new talent and pressure on existing managers to quickly fill the gap,” Alanna Harrington, managing consultant at Talogy, said in a statement. “Hiring managers need to think more strategically about what they want from candidates, the long-term goals of the organization, and how to be more engaging throughout the recruitment process.”
For instance, some candidates may feel the recruitment process has lost the personal touch and depends on assessments more than personal connection, the report found. That means job seekers may not have the opportunity to demonstrate transferable skills, such as interpersonal skills. That matters for early career candidates who may not have as much practical experience, especially if they couldn’t work in their chosen career during the COVID-19 pandemic, Talogy said.
In a global survey of more than 1,200 managers, recent employees and early career seekers, learning agility was seen as an important competency by early career workers. However, hiring managers didn’t include the characteristic in the top 10 capabilities they’re seeking. Instead, hiring managers said they preferred candidates with the skills and competencies of the open role, as well as the ability to work within a team and with the organizational culture.
Communication, teamwork and problem-solving were among the top three desired competencies globally — for hiring managers and early career workers alike.
Both executives and employees say entry-level workers are unprepared for their jobs in 2024, according to a General Assembly report. Although leaders said workers don’t have enough training to be hired, workers also said their employers don’t offer adequate training.
Managers seem to be stressed by early career professionals, with 18% saying they’ve thought about quitting because of Generation Z employees, according to a report from Intelligent.com. More than a quarter also said they’d avoid hiring Gen Z workers if they could, and half said they fired a Gen Z direct report.
Gen Z candidates continue to have high demands when considering full-time roles, prioritizing work-life balance and job stability as non-negotiables, according to a Simplicity survey. Gen Z job seekers said speed during hiring, transparency around compensation, and proactive communication throughout the recruitment journey were essential as well.