First, a quick recap. Back at the height of the Great Reshuffle in 2021, recruiter demand was skyrocketing. Measured by the number of paid job posts for recruiting roles on LinkedIn, demand would rise to nearly 4x the prepandemic baseline of January 2019.
Then the rollercoaster dropped just as fast as it rose: by late 2022, demand for recruiters had fallen by nearly half from its peak earlier in the year — and continued to fall from there, even briefly dipping below the baseline in late 2023.
Finally, we get to the good news: the ride has been far steadier from the start of 2024 on, with recruiter demand stabilizing, sitting around 16% above the baseline as of September 2024.
What it means for recruiters
The recent recovery and stabilization may be a promising sign for recruiting professionals. While it doesn’t come close to the heights of the Great Reshuffle, it’s an encouraging sign, especially amid what some call the “Big Stay.”
The modest rise in recruiter demand could even be an early indicator that hiring is set to rebound over the next year. Of course, if the past few years have taught recruiting pros anything, it’s to expect the unexpected.
For now, the steadier and slightly positive trajectory of recruiter demand is good enough reason to hope for a smoother ride into 2025.
Methodology
Talent acquisition (TA) demand is defined as the change in job posts over time on LinkedIn for talent acquisition roles. The number of jobs posted is normalized against prepandemic job posts using January 2019 as the benchmark. An uplift means there has been growth in TA demand compared with prepandemic levels. The timeframe of this analysis is January 2019 to September 2024.
