How do candidates search for job opportunities?

It is well known within the engineering and manufacturing industry that for many years finding, attracting and retaining good quality professionals has been a challenge and for various technical and people management positions there has been a significant shortage of high calibre candidates in the market.

In a competitive market, it is essential to consider a candidate’s experience during their job search and what they are doing to find their next role. Job searches from a candidate perspective have changed dramatically, even as recently as the past five years.

Technology, primarily, has led to significant changes in the way we live our daily lives. With the takeover of social media, apps and the internet on smartphones and tablets, we are consistently glued to our mobile devices, which has resulted in a huge shift in candidates’ job search processes. Highly sought-after talent across the manufacturing platform are barraged by multiple agencies, consultancies and internal recruiters claiming to have the key to their next big career opportunity. It is because of this that many good quality candidates won’t feel as though they need to be overly engaged in their search for new roles as opportunities will simply find them. 

With that in mind, the general professional populace still actively search for roles themselves, however, this has changed too. Whenever and wherever a professional finds themselves a spare five minutes, with the ability to connect to the internet, many jobs websites are accessible at the click of a button. Candidates can now keep their eye on the market at all times and apply for a new position within minutes. The world is at these professionals’ fingertips and this has shifted much of the power in the recruitment process to them. Simply completing a quick form on a popular job website will trigger real-time emails and text job alerts keeping them fully updated, even as they work their day jobs. Developments in technology have seen the introduction of smarter, targeted job ads where looking at one job, via LinkedIn for example, means any roles that match the same criteria will be flagged and highlighted following each login. 

The candidate shortage in the market combined with the advancing digital age has given job seekers the ability to measure their worth and position in the market without being overly engaged or registered with agencies. Wages are continuing to rise in the manufacturing sector, a trend that professionals are very much aware of. This has led to an inflated perception of their standpoint in the market which in turn has increased wages even further. The market is currently full of job vacancies across various technical and operational sectors. Job boards and websites within technical disciplines have almost tripled in the past five years, although this doesn’t give a true representation of the market. Many of these roles will be duplicated, falsified for data capture or archaic roles filled months earlier. Good candidates are becoming wiser to this and are only likely to apply if the role has a business attached.

Professionals have more control in selecting which opportunities to take and negotiating their contract terms and conditions when offered a role. Further advances in technology will only increase access to information and consequently give candidates more power. With this being said, it is ever pressing that professionals seek the advice of industry specialists to realign their expectations with more realistic goals. Money, career development opportunities and work/life balance still remain major areas of concern for professionals when deciding a move. With multi-offers and buybacks more likely in the current market, having a trusted recruitment advisor is essential in making a final decision.

The current generation of candidates in the engineering and manufacturing sector is completely different to the existing professionals in the market. The gap in talented engineers rose significantly following the decline in apprentice schemes over the past few years and these new age professionals entering the industry are a generation who have grown up with technology at their fingertips and as a result have a disconnected view of the market. The priorities of those starting out their careers are unique and their expectations of day-to-day job satisfaction, and career progression opportunities are high. Effective employee management has never been so important when sourcing and onboarding these new candidates, and attracting and retaining this new generation of engineering and manufacturing professionals is paramount to the continuous growth of a successful and innovative operation. To do this, training and development, engagement, enjoyment and proven job satisfaction amongst employees is key. While there is no quick win here, developing an organisational culture which embodies these values and working environment is imperative in order to effectively attract and retain top talent in the current market.

The skills gap within the engineering and manufacturing industry is not improving and only time, with the implementation of new of apprenticeship schemes, will see the industry recover. Technology is giving the candidate pool an upper hand, with increased options and heightened expectations which has seen a new generation of candidates entering the job market. It is now even more paramount that recruitment partners are specialists within their fields, not only to best consult their client base but also, more importantly, the candidates who need clear insight into the market and where they sit. If both clients and candidates make use of industry specialist recruiters, assignments are much more likely to be successful, decreasing the risks of unhappy employees due to unrealistic expectations.

If you would like any more information or to arrange a meeting to evaluate your position in the market, contact your local Michael Page office. Alternatively, submit a job spec and one of our expert consultants will be in touch. 

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