By Abby Lombardi on June 21, 2011 in Staffing Industry.
As the employment situation slowly turns around, direct employers are placing more online job ads and will likely need assistance from recruiting agencies to fill open positions. We took a look at what jobs corporate recruiters have advertised over the past 4 weeks and here’s our prediction on the top 5 fields that staffing firms will be asked to source for in the coming weeks.
1. Computer Programmers
Is anyone not recruiting Computer Programmers? As the most in-demand field by direct employers in this 28-day time period, there have been 128,000 new online job ads for Computer Programmers. This field has seen incredible growth over the past year and there aren’t any indications that it will slow down. The top jobs within Computer Programming are Computer Systems Analysts, Computer Software Engineers, Web Developers, Computer Support Specialists, and Network and Computer Systems Administrators – all of which saw double-digit year-over-year growth from the same 4-week period in 2010.
Top Occupations in Computer Programming over the past 4 weeks
Source: WANTED Analytics
2. Marketing
Think Marketers are everywhere? Apparently, employers don’t think they’re in enough places. More than 15,700 job ads were placed by direct employers for Marketers over the past 4 weeks, a definite sign that companies are boosting their marketing efforts to drive their businesses. Look at the Hiring Demand chart below, this field is growing very quickly. In May 2009, there were 7,857 new Marketing Manager job ads placed online by employers. Fast-forward two years to May 2011 and that number almost tripled to 21,218 online job ads and hitting a 4-year high. This drastic increase in hiring demand has reduced the US candidate supply from 20 potential candidates for every job ad in 2009 to about 10 candidates in the current market.
Hiring Demand for Marketing Managers over the past 4 years
Source: WANTED Analytics
3. Healthcare
Based on the continuous increase of hiring demand, the talent shortage in the healthcare sector is not going to get any better. Direct employers placed more than 96,000 new online job ads over the past 4 weeks. Registered Nurses have been the single most in-demand occupation every month for the past 4 years. Of these 96,000 healthcare job ads in the past 28 days, 43,000 (44%) were for RNs. But let’s not forget about other healthcare jobs – like Physical Therapists (which saw a 67% year-over-year increase) and Occupational Therapists (with a 74% growth) – that are being demanded by hospitals, care facilities, rehabilitation centers, therapists, and home-health nursing providers.
Although recruiters across the US will likely see difficulties in hiring within the healthcare sector, Cleveland should see the most recruiting since more than 1,600 jobs were advertised here over the past 28 days – the most of any US metro area, according to the Hiring ScaleTM. However, if recruiters in Cleveland look to Akron when sourcing, they will find an alternative source of candidates. While competition among employers remains fierce in Cleveland, Akron falls in line with the national average and will see slightly easier hiring conditions. Akron is about a 50 minute drive from Cleveland and many potential candidates may be willing to make the commute for work.
Healthcare Hiring Scales for Cleveland and Akron vs US National Average
Source: WANTED Analytics
4. Accountants and Auditors
After a massive financial crisis and slow growth over the past two years, hiring demand for Accountants and Auditors has steadily increased so far in 2011. Now up 29% from last year and a sign that the economy is turning around, there were more than 10,000 online job ads for Accountants and another 4,000 for Auditors. All of the 5 largest accounting firms have placed job ads for Accountants and Auditors over the past 28 days. PricewaterhouseCoopers, the 3rd largest accounting firm in the US, posted the most online ads with more than 1,000 in the past 4 weeks.
Not surprisingly, most of these job ads are in the New York metro area. But, recruiting firms in Los Angeles, Washington DC, Chicago and Atlanta should be on the lookout – online job ads in these locations for this field are on the rise.
Heat Map of Hiring Demand for Accountants and Auditors
- Source: WANTED Analytics
5. Engineering
Overall, demand for Engineers by employers is up 53%. 9 of the top 10 direct employers looking for Engineers have placed significantly more ads over the past 28 days than the same time last year. Although the Army National Guard is the only direct employer to not increase, they placed the most job ads of any employer and are even with hiring demand in 2010.
Recruiters in California should be aware that direct employers placed more than 5,000 online job ads for positions located in California, representing a 55% increase in hiring demand, and talent sourcing could be difficult.
Top employers of Engineers over the past 28 days
Source: WANTED Analytics
How can you, as a recruiting agency, prepare for these increases in candidate sourcing? Start building your pipelines now. Begin by feeling out the market. And check out the Hiring ScaleTM to find alternative talent pools for these occupations and learn more about the difficulties involved in hiring for them.
The good news? If you’re recent grad in these fields or an experienced professional looking for a new job, these markets are growing at an exceptional pace. Most areas of the US will experience talent shortages and recruiters will be competing heavily for your talents. Make sure you update your resume and go on a few practice interviews. Recruiters may be knocking on your door very soon!
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