The Great Resignation is not affecting location

With inflation soaring and the cost of living increasing, the much-publicized great resignation is showing no sign of slowing down and does not appear to be deterring movement in the market.  Both hiring and separations are trending at high levels, showing that now is the time that many have been anticipating in terms of job creation and the opportunity to move.

According to the most recent statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics hires were trending at approximately 6.7 million and separations were showing at 6.3 million.  Interestingly, “quits” were showing at a series high of 4.5 million, with the South the region highest for “quits” with 1.7 million compared against the Northeast region’s 600,000. 

One thing the most recent statistics are showing is that industry is bouncing back and, in many sectors, has bounced back to pre-pandemic levels but the major thing that is now evident is that job openings are at all-time highs. From the latest statistics by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, job openings were approximately 11.5 million which is up 3.1 million, from the 8.4 million job openings in March 2021, but this lends itself to a bigger question where is the talent and where is it going?

If we take the Software Industry as an example, there are major hubs in the Western States such as California and Washington, with many of the FAANG organizations located there, and the Northeast States such as New York and Massachusetts with their FinTech hubs.  However, the emergence of Texas as a tech hub with its lower average salary of circa $93,000, compared to California’s $122,200 and Washington State’s $124,000, is making waves with many tech firms springing up aided by Accelerators, Innovation Parks and the State’s “Silicon Hills”.  Yet, what if that talent didn’t have to relocate thousands of miles?

One thing that the pandemic has shown us is that Remote Working is here to stay and for organizations that are actively hiring, it presents new opportunities to access talent pools that they previously would not have had the opportunity to connect with and access niche skillsets that would have remained unhired for. With many organizations switching to a remote-first strategy for talent acquisition, it is also presenting the opportunity to change culture, encourage innovation, develop their DEI proposition, etc.  Not to mention that remote-first employees are typically the happiest with many evidencing a better work-life balance, more flexibility and the ability to spend more time with family due to not having a commute, all leading to increased retention rates.

At MCS Group we have helped build and scale tech teams from FinTech to E-commerce to Cybersecurity and have become experts in remote-first talent acquisition and attraction strategy. MCS can identify, engage and source the best fit and talent for your organization, culture and growth as fast as possible while delivering an outstanding client and candidate experience. We are able to do this because we have developed expert knowledge and built deep networks of highly qualified professionals across Technology combined with the best tech stack in recruitment and an unrivalled passion for service.

To find out how we can make your recruitment faster, easier and more effective and to understand how we can help you overcome your recruitment challenges, get in touch with Ryan Quinn, Regional Vice President, to find out how we will transform how you recruit.