Faltering economies impact recruitment

August 8th, 2023 | Industry News

In both the USA and the UK, economic slowdowns are starting to influence when, how and why companies are recruiting. Data from the USA shows that while nearly a third of brands are planning to hire new staff, a quarter are actually reducing their workforce. The best recruitment crm shows that the level of enquiries from entry to mid-level marketing personnel has rocketed, as uncertainty over brand futures sends those without much experience looking for more established brands to work for.

UK retail recruitment trends

In a similar trend, the summer ‘surge’ of retail recruitment for the holiday shopping season that begins with ‘Back to School’ and runs to New Year’s Sales, is definitely reduced in the UK. In what has been described as a brutal start to the year, almost 15,000 retail jobs had been axed by February 2023, and the trend continues, with Wilko being the latest casualty of online shopping and poor decision-making. The best recruitment websites are inundated with applicants looking for winter retail work, but there’s little evidence that even the biggest retailers, like M&S and Asos will match previous recruitment levels. But there is hope on the horizon. The shift towards online is changing the complexion of both marketing and retailing. Amazon is hiring for its winter rush as equivalent or great levels than last year, and marketing firms are pivoting their skills base to recognise that digital is the key to consumer success. And for mid to experienced level staff in both marketing and retail, there may be an income boost too. While many positions are being offered on an ‘interim’ rather than a permanent basis, both sectors have moved to offering hiring bonuses, which make new roles more attractive.

The role of recruiting software

Online recruitment software is integral to this movement – in the USA over 70% of applicants used a mobile device when seeking a retail job – this is a substantial increase on the 50% who did so in spring 2023. Why? Because most people in retail work some kind of shift, and seeking work online allows them to operate within the limited time they have available to seek a new job. SAAS recruitment agencies are also benefitting from this new trend, as they are able to engage candidates ‘on the go’, during breaks or while travelling to work and sophisticated applicant tracking system UK wide approaches mean that many processes can be automated, giving the candidate a sense that they have achieved something substantial, even if they’re online at two in the morning or only have ten minutes to progress their job search.