How Recruiters See the Workforce Over the Next 12 Months

According to ManGroup's Talent Shortage 2020 report, 63% of Indian companies report a talent shortage, primarily in IT, engineering services, and sales. The country's skilled job shortage is being blamed for rising skilled unemployment in India. With an ever-increasing global demand for Indian talent, the Indian IT services sector is constantly on the lookout for new talented graduates.

The Wheebox India Skills Report 2023, produced in collaboration with CII, Taggd, AICTE, AIU, Sunstone, Pearson, AWS, and Economic Times, investigates talent demand and supply, as well as job hiring intent. According to the report's findings, compared to last year's employability figures of 46.2%, 50.3% of young people were found to be highly employable overall, which is a significant improvement. The proportion of employable women in the workforce has risen to 52.8%, compared to 47.2% for men. According to the report, 89% of graduates were actively looking for internship opportunities. According to the survey, candidates from Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Delhi had the highest employability.

The report also states that India will hire the most in the automotive, engineering, and internet industries. Furthermore, companies in India have a hiring intent of 36.08% for the 2023 demand forecast. According to the report, the most in-demand courses in 2023 will be B.Com and MBA, with the most employable talent at 60.62% and 60.1%, respectively. BE/B.Tech domain candidates rank third in the domain-wise employability category, with 57.44% employability. According to the study, the BFSI, pharmaceutical, e-commerce, and IT/ITES sectors are driving demand for skilled labour. Hiring of freshmen in these fields is expected to increase by 20% in 2023 compared to 2022.

According to Founder & CEO of Wheebox, Chief Convenor of India Skills Report Nirmal Singh, “As we celebrate India at 75, it is imperative now that we harness the demographic dividend. The world is rapidly ageing, but India is still young. In the next few decades, India will be a talent powerhouse and one of the largest contributors to the global workforce.”

He added, “If India’s demographic dividend is productively leveraged, growth prospects will brighten, helping it to leapfrog its GDP from the current $3trillion+ to double by 2030. Globally, of the total workforce in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM), women have only 28% representation, a sorry state of affairs indeed.”

Similar sentiments are expressed by a survey titled “Indeed Talent Leaders: How to Make Hiring More Human in 2023” conducted at the end of 2022 by Indeed.

Indeed’s Voice of the Customer team extended a survey to their research community of leaders of medium-to-large businesses who use Indeed on a regular basis, known as Indeed Insiders. This survey not only asked about changes and challenges their recruiters observe in today’s workplace — many of whom echoed hiring trends found in the report — but also about what they hope to see in the future of recruiting. 

Ongoing Hiring Challenges in the Tight Labour Market

-[The] wave of reduced candidates [aged] 16 to 18 will create a major shortage [at] companies that are usually thought of as a place for a first job.

-[Our greatest hiring challenge will be the] continued shrinkage of the skilled labour force. Eventually these workers will not be seeking new jobs and opportunities and will look for stability.

As those struggling on the front lines of hiring are already well aware, there is a wide gap between employer demand and supply of candidates, mainly due to demographic shifts. According to Indeed & Glassdoor’s Hiring and Workplace Trends Report 2023, there will be fewer people between 15 and 65 years old joining the workforce over the next decade. Combined with other trends, this means the supply of workers will dwindle.

However, there are still ways for employers to widen their talent pools:

• Immigration: Turn to a global marketplace to promote hiring in tight labour markets. Policies that allow immigrants quick access to employment widen avenues for talent acquisition. If remote work is not an option, many countries have eased visa requirements for certain categories of workers.
• Overlooked pools of workers: Adopting flexible work policies in areas like scheduling helps businesses tap into various groups of workers, like those with criminal records; people with disabilities; older employees; and women, who juggle work and childcare more often than their male counterparts.
• Automation technology: As the trends report states, technological advances can boost productivity without pushing up joblessness. Machines and the ever-evolving applications of digital technology can help fill gaps in the labour supply.

Difficulties Meeting Demands for Increased Pay

-[My concern is the] challenges with [the] need for more pay, especially with the [fear] of a recession among us.

-[It is difficult to fill] front line positions [due to] increased starting wages, while managing downturns or potential recessions.

Many employers touch on economic concerns and how they will impact their hiring — a complex issue considering how, in the tight labour market, workers will continue to have the leverage to press for higher pay. 

According to a recent study by VOIS (Vodafone Intelligent Solutions), a global technology company, salary continues to be the most important factor for Indian jobseekers, but considering a new role or deciding to remain with an employer is also driven by the desire to 'serve the greater good'. More than a quarter (28%) of respondents agreed that this would be the most motivating factor in their job search, up from 22% prior to COVID. The least popular career goals for Indian jobseekers surveyed were to manage people (19% of respondents) and to have an international career (18% of respondents). Since the pandemic, the percentage of Indian jobseekers who prioritise work-life balance has increased from 36% to 47%. The desire for job security has also increased, with 37% ranking it as one of their top career goals, up from 34% prior to the pandemic.

Almost half (45%) of Indian jobseekers polled said they would be happiest in a role if their employer allowed them to choose their working hours, and 44% said they would like free skills training to help them develop.

The report by VOIS; a strategic division of Vodafone Group Plc, based in the United Kingdom states that in India, 50% of jobseekers believe that working from home is a permanent option, and 59% believe that changing jobs has helped them become more productive.

"Without a regular daily commute, 46% of men and women surveyed in India believe their family relationships have improved, with 42% saying they spend more time in nature,"

According to the data, people who prefer work-life balance as their top career goals have increased from 36% to 47% since the pandemic. Job security has also grown in popularity, with 37% of people citing it as one of their top career goals, up from 34% prior to the pandemic.

Going All-In on Worker Wellbeing

- Employee ideals around what they value most, including flexibility, will continue to shape the workforce in 2023. I believe we will continue to see a strong interest in individuals seeking out work with companies that not only align with their values, but provide them with support beyond the things they love to do outside working hours.

-I genuinely hope that employers do not backtrack on all of the gains in work-life balance. Whether it's working from home, flex time, and even just a general sense of understanding, I hope they continue to expand.

When COVID struck the world and the workplace, it impacted many people’s mental health. This was reflected in an increase in the number of Glassdoor reviews indicating that employers offer mental health benefits, which increased through 2022.

Today, with workers in the driver’s seat, they have the ability to seek out employers that emphasise well-being at work, which includes helping staff manage stress and find satisfaction and purpose. 

The Michael Page India India@Work report identified key factors that demonstrate how employees manage demanding business conditions while also making time for their personal lives. This survey included 585 Gen-Ys from various industries and levels of seniority. Approximately 98 percent of respondents believe that getting along with their bosses and coworkers can boost productivity. While approximately 77 percent of those polled regard their colleagues as friends, only 43 percent regard their managers as friends.

On average, 92 percent of workers spend less than an hour on personal concerns at work, while 65 percent claimed they use messaging applications to talk with friends and relatives. Furthermore, 27% of the workers polled admitted to sending personal emails while at work.

According to the survey, around 9 out of 10 respondents believe that a flexible workplace is essential because it improves their work-life balance (60%) and promotes their professional productivity (34%).

One in two respondents talk to coworkers about personal issues, with economy and politics being the most often discussed topics, followed by entertainment (26%).

There is less time for family, friends, and wellbeing when commuting is longer. 65 percent of those who responded to the study claim to commute for no more than an hour each day, and 76 percent think that commute duration is a significant consideration when looking for a new job.

Seven out of ten respondents believed that providing gadgets that allow for remote work has a favourable effect on work-life balance, which is another factor that matters to employees. A mobile device is provided to about 93% of the workforce, and 55% of them utilise it for personal usage.

To help ensure employees are satisfied, and thus more likely to stay at an organisation, employers must focus on understanding, measuring and supporting the wellbeing and happiness of their employees.

Continued Demand for Remote Work

-I think we will see more employers trying to get employees back into the office and will see employees react negatively to this shift.

-Remote work, which was a necessity during the pandemic, will continue to thrive.

While some employers are attempting to shift workers back to the office, remote work will continue to be a large aspect of the workforce. A recent study by Indeed suggests that remote positions have substantial potential to attract a global pool of candidates.

According to the Tech Talent Outlook by job site SCIKEY in 2022, 82% respondents admitted that they prefer working from home to going back to the office. This trend came out of necessity during COVID, but workers’ successfully proving that they can work from home ensures this trend will persist for some jobs, and for workers’ preferences.

However, there are some challenges in accommodating remote work. According to a recent report by HR solutions firm Aon, companies that plan to enforce in-office presence in the coming months have a 29% attrition rate. The rate for those who already work on-site was 20%. The attrition rate in companies with back-to-office plans and hybrid models was 19%, the same as in companies that allow employees to work remotely.

The WFH trend appears to be fading, with only about 9% of companies in an Aon survey in India allowing completely remote work as of August.

Almost 74% of office space users are considering distributed workspaces as a way to transition from location-centric to people-centric workspaces, according to a Colliers-Awfis survey. A little over 53% of the occupiers prefer a mix of WFH and working from home.

On Indeed, in-person employers are responding by offering signing bonuses more readily than companies recruiting for remote-friendly occupations.

Retention of Current Employees

-To find and retain employees — this year has been a challenge but each day we try and implement new ideas to keep everyone happy. 

-[My hopes for hiring are] retention, retention, less turnover and retention.

When asked about their hopes for the new year, recruiters want to make more hires amid rising challenges in the workplace — and hold onto those they have.

Going forward, it is important to be flexible as things continue to change and make your workers feel heard and valued. Focusing on each of these recruitment trends can help you retain more of your workforce.