Pandemic Fallout: 89% of U.S. Workers Willing to Reskill for a New Job According to Global Workforce Study from Appcast and Boston Consulting Group
As the U.S. economy begins to rebound, part three of the 2021 "Decoding Global Talent" U.S. study finds a growing number of U.S. workers considering alternative careers
LEBANON, N.H., May 4, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Appcast, the global leader in programmatic recruitment advertising technology and services, today announced the final findings from the 2021 "Decoding Global Talent" study compiled by Boston Consulting Group (BCG), The Network and Appcast. The third study, "Decoding Global Reskilling and Career Paths," reveals how economic uncertainty and a shifting labor market impacts workers' willingness and preferences for reskilling for new jobs.
Workers are Interested in Reskilling
COVID-19 disrupted nearly every industry in 2020, resulting in massive layoffs and corporate downsizings. As a result of economic uncertainty, the findings unveiled today reveal that 89% of U.S. workers are willing to retrain to a different job role. Of that total, 39% said they would retrain if their job depended on it. The report finds that mid-senior workers (ages 31-40) and those with a master's degree and above are most willing to reskill.
Digging deeper, the study explores respondents' willingness to retrain for a completely different job function to stay competitive. Out of the 15 industries provided, respondents within telecommunications (68%) topped the list with respondents most willing to retrain. Travel and tourism (61%) came in second, followed closely by financial institutions (60%) and consumer products and services (58%).
Reskill...But Not For All In-Demand Jobs
With the rise in digital transformation – and the benefits of working from home during a global pandemic – the study finds that for workers, job roles within IT and tech are now the most sought-after, with the majority of U.S. respondents willing to retrain for these highly coveted positions. Additional white-collar jobs such as consulting, digitalization and automation, and engineering and tech followed in the rankings.
However, jobs that require workers to show up in-person – including service sector, manual labor and manufacturing – are least desirable across all respondents. Workers who currently fill these roles have a desire to pivot away from in-person and front-line roles and into roles that can be done remotely, such as engineering (25%) and IT and tech (19%). This poses an added layer of challenge for organizations who are looking to fill their service roles or manual labor roles, many of which saw significant growth in jobs in March and as such, are in high demand from an employer perspective.
Creating a War for Talent
Successful COVID-19 vaccination rollouts and optimistic predictions around significant economic growth are leading organizations to ramp up hiring efforts at a rapid pace. In fact, the Bureau of Labor Statistics recently reported nearly a million new jobs in March 2021 alone, double the number of jobs added in February. While there is now a surplus in job openings, recent Appcast data finds significant reductions in job seeker activity over the same time period. The surging demand for candidates, due to an increase in open positions, combined with a decrease in the supply of willing and active job seekers, has intensified the war for top talent.
"Over the last few months, we witnessed an unprecedented surge in open positions across many industries, creating fierce competition for talent among organizations of all sizes," said Heather Salerno, senior vice president of marketing, Appcast. "As the U.S. economy begins to reopen, this trend will only accelerate, and employers – particularly those within the services sector or that require workers on-site – must adapt quickly to attract and retain workers. We're pleased to work with BCG on this important study and share the final round of insights to support hiring organizations as they prepare for a post-pandemic environment."
US-specific findings from the report are highlighted in this blog post; to download the full global report Decoding Global Reskilling and Career Paths, click here.
Methodology
The 2021 "Decoding Global Talent" report was conducted by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and The Network between October and November 2020. Feedback was obtained by nearly 209,000 workers in 190 countries, including more than 6,300 workers in the United States. Data on U.S. workers was obtained by Appcast, The Network's exclusive U.S. partner.
About Appcast
Appcast is the global leader in programmatic recruitment advertising technology and services. With advanced technology, unmatched market data and a team of the industry's best recruitment marketers, Appcast's technology and services manage over half a billion dollars in job advertising annually on behalf of more than 1,500 clients. Headquartered in Lebanon, N.H. with offices in Boston, Mass., New Brunswick, Canada and Minsk, Belarus, Appcast is a subsidiary of StepStone, one of the world's largest job classified businesses, and a proud member of the Axel Springer SE family. To learn more, visit https://www.appcast.io/ and follow on Twitter @appcast_io.
About Boston Consulting Group
Boston Consulting Group partners with leaders in business and society to tackle their most important challenges and capture their greatest opportunities. BCG was the pioneer in business strategy when it was founded in 1963. Today, we help clients with total transformation—inspiring complex change, enabling organizations to grow, building competitive advantage, and driving bottom-line impact.
To succeed, organizations must blend digital and human capabilities. Our diverse, global teams bring deep industry and functional expertise and a range of perspectives to spark change. BCG delivers solutions through leading-edge management consulting along with technology and design, corporate and digital ventures—and business purpose. We work in a uniquely collaborative model across the firm and throughout all levels of the client organization, generating results that allow our clients to thrive.
Media Contact
Amanda Corey, Gabriel Marketing Group (for Appcast), 202-494-0098, [email protected]
SOURCE Appcast
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