Profession.hu: The average job search time increased from four to five months

According to the latest trend report for the third quarter of Profession.hu, Hungary’s leading job portal, nearly half (46%) of domestic employees aged 18-65 are currently looking for a new job or are open to a new job opportunity. While employee activity remains strong, the number of advertised jobs has decreased by more than 15% compared to the same period last year. “Due to the increasing competition for vacant positions, the transition is taking longer and longer. This year, those who changed jobs in the past year found their new jobs in an average of five months – a quarter more time than at this time last year, when it was still four months. Based on our experience, you can shorten the job search time, among other things, by tailoring your CV specifically to the given advertisement. For example, our renewed CV-making service on our website can help you write these” – highlighted Blanka Dencső, market research and business development expert at Profession.hu.

The dynamic growth of labor market movement is also indicated by the fact that applicants are devoting more time to searching for their new position: half of job seekers spend several hours on this at least weekly, while this rate was only 37% last year.

“We consider it important to emphasize that the efficiency of the job search process and the proportion of relevant candidates can be greatly improved by feedback from advertising companies. Based on the experiences of applicants, the number of employer feedback has decreased: this year, almost five out of ten (44%) reported that they had not received a response to any of their applications, while only 35% said so at this time last year. In addition to fewer open positions, the lack of feedback can also make the situation of job seekers more difficult, because they do not know why their application was rejected. All this contributes to the extension of the job search time, since in the absence of feedback, applicants cannot know what is worth improving, “so they can move on to the next application more slowly and with more uncertainty”

– the expert added.

Transition between sectors

Based on the analysis, a significant portion of job seekers do not stick to their usual industry. Only a quarter of applicants would continue to apply in the same field where they previously or currently work, while three quarters are open to opportunities in other sectors.

Most important job search criteria

The order of importance of the criteria considered when changing jobs has remained unchanged in recent years, but some shifts in the proportions can be observed. The size of the salary and benefits package has become even more important than before: while 85% of candidates considered this a top priority last year, 88% this year. This is followed by the location of the workplace, working hours, and then working conditions – while the personality of the manager plays a somewhat lesser role in their decision-making.