Employers and employees alike were optimistic about economic recovery

Along with robust growth in the manufacturing and service industries, the hiring market for Supply Chain & Procurement and Engineering grew rapidly in Q1 2021. Despite Covid-19 outbreaks in April, the market held strong for a short while because both employers and employees alike were optimistic about economic recovery based on experience in 2020.

However, as the outbreaks and social distancing measures in Vietnam stretched on, many businesses could not keep up production. As a result, the unemployment rate increased. While some businesses continued recruiting for key positions, onboarding processes were heavily affected.

Yen Nguyen, Manager of Supply Chain & Procurement and Engineering at Robert Walters Vietnam, provides an update on the hiring market in 2021, and forecasts what lies ahead for candidates and hiring managers alike in 2022.

Promotion within organisation

Yen shares, “The biggest hiring trends in 2022 will be firstly, localisation. We can expect more key positions to be replaced by local staff. Secondly, companies in Vietnam have an increasing preference to promote from within for senior positions. More internal transfers are also taking place. And finally, we’re also seeing more Management Trainee Programmes. Companies will invest more in developing and nurturing talents from scratch.”

Data analytics and exceptional decision-making skillsets in high demand

Yen points out, “Skillsets in demand in 2022 include strategic planning, the skill of flexibility, digital transformation, business process transformation capabilities, including lean and continuous improvement, data analytics, specifically the ability to look across huge volumes of data and information to make better, faster, holistic decisions

She explains further, “And risk management expertise combined with problem solving. Candidates who can quickly assimilate enormous amounts of information rapidly and who have exceptional decision-making skills are highly valuable.”

Re-design and speed up recruitment process

“My advice for hiring managers looking to recruit employees in 2022 is to first, speed up and redesign the recruitment process. Secondly, make sure you have clear and consistent conversations with candidates to maintain your employer brand. Adopt an empathetic approach to enhance the candidate-employer relationship – it also helps with talent attraction. For retention, start by creating a safe working environment, especially for companies such as factories that need employees to come into work,” Yen emphasises.

She further adds, “Next, be flexible wherever possible. This can mean anything from establishing flexible hours to empowering employees to manage their own work-life balance. And maintain your company culture and build trust and recalibrate resources and responsibilities to balance workloads across teams. Finally, create more room for career development so employees can see how they can grow with you.”

Attracting talent is more challenging than ever, as employees value job security in these uncertain times. So be prepared for higher salary demands from job seekers.  

Job security is valued during uncertain times

At this point in time, employees are reluctant to switch jobs because job security is valued in these uncertain times. Candidate sourcing for open positions is going to be more challenging than ever before.

Yen points out, “For those who do make the move in 2022, we expect that candidates will want a 10 – 30% increase, or even more, to compensate for the trade-offs they are making with their current job stability.”

Find out more

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