For the final spurt at the end of the year: Companies adjust recruiting strategies

Jobs continue to be diligently advertised: ManpowerGroup's 38% forecast for new hires puts Switzerland 13 percentage points above the outlook for the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) economic region and 8 percentage points above the global average. As a result, Switzerland ranks first in the EMEA region and second globally for hiring expectations. Year-on-year, the Swiss net employment outlook shows an increase of 18 percentage points. Compared with last quarter, it is up by 11 percentage points. As a result, these hiring expectations are the highest since the survey was launched in 2005. Jan Jacob, Country Manager ManpowerGroup Switzerland, says: "The data shows that employers expect a significant intensification of hiring activity in the fall. Despite the global economic headwinds, recruitment remains in focus, driven by the extreme talent shortage coupled with low unemployment. Companies are focused on finding and engaging talent. To this end, recruiting strategies are being adapted and a larger pool of candidates is being considered."

Optimistic outlook on the southern and western borders 

 At 57%, Ticino shows the highest net employment outlook for the coming quarter. In second place is the Lake Geneva region 46%, representing an increase of 35 percentage points compared with the third quarter of 2023. However, the survey results are also positive for the other Swiss regions, with scores ranging from 30% to 38%. The only region to report a slight decrease (-1 percentage point) in hiring expectations compared to Q3 is Northwestern Switzerland.

The communications industry and microenterprises

Companies in the "communications services" sector report the strongest employment outlook, with 66% (44% more than in Q3). Switzerland ranks second in the world for this segment's employment outlook, exceeding the global average by 35 percentage points. Companies in the "transport, logistics and automotive" (62%) and "energy and utilities" (53%) sectors also expect a positive development. The "finance and real estate" and "healthcare and life science" sectors are down 5% compared with the summer quarter. In terms of the size of companies surveyed, micro companies are expected to plan to hire the most in the next three months (57%), small (41%), large (34%) and medium companies (31%).

Recruiting strategies in times of a shortage of skilled workers

As the talent pool shrinks, companies are changing their recruitment and workforce management strategies. To fill vacancies, about half of respondents say they give equal consideration to temporary and permanent workers.

To overcome the talent shortage, 29% of companies are willing to hire older applicants and employees who want to change careers or do not have all the technical skills they are looking for. Among boomers (ages 59-77), companies' strategic focus remains on retention (24%). For Gen Z (ages 18-26), Millennials (ages 27-42) and Gen X (ages 43-58) candidates, 25% of respondents say they focus on upskilling and retraining strategies. The most crucial for 40% of companies in the recruiting process are communication and teamwork skills. According to ManpowerGroup's survey, these two soft skills are ranked as particularly high across all sectors and regions in Switzerland or even globally. In an environment of competition for talent, employers see work-life balance and a positive work culture, including recognition of performance, as the most important factors for increasing productivity.

Source: ManpowerGroup