What's in store for Ireland’s hiring market in 2023?

We’ve been talking about the chronic talent shortage in the finance and technology market for over 18 months. However, there are signs that this labour scarcity is now easing. Data from Irish Jobs suggests, that after some extremely tight quarters brought about by the fallout from the pandemic, that the number of vacancies is down by 10%, compared to the same period last year. And compared to Q2 2022, live vacancies were down 4% in the three months until the end of September.

Superficially, vacancies being down may indicate negative market sentiment, however these numbers still are an increase on pre-pandemic vacancy rates. And when you consider this in conjunction with unemployment rates being extremely low, there is a lot of reasons to be excited about the Irish hiring market as we go into 2023.

Remote opportunities are above 2019 levels 

The loosening of the talent shortage is having an impact on the availability of remote working options. The Irish Jobs report captures a 9% fall in the number of jobs offering remote work when compared with the quarter to the end of June. However, when you consider that in July 2022 one in five job adverts were for remote opportunities, the number of remote roles is still around 20% higher when compared to the same period last year.     

This is particularly good news for workers in Ireland as it opens them up to opportunities they would not otherwise consider. Moreover, at Marks Sattin we are seeing an increased appetite for roles which offer a mix between remote and on-site. After two years at home, many people are missing the office culture and the opportunities which come with being around colleagues.

Although, if you are still keen on taking on a remote role, there are many available. We’re also finding the quality of remote roles are improving. The businesses who still offer completely remote opportunities are doing so in an authentic and well thought out way, many of the people we work with in these positions are reporting a great work/life balance and positive company culture.   

The technology SME recruitment market is buoyant   

The technology sector is one of Ireland’s top performing sectors but as we go into 2023, it has a drastically diminished outlook. The combination of record inflation and high interest rates has knocked the confidence out of swathes of businesses for the fourth quarter. In the immediate aftermath of the pandemic, hiring confidence was at an all-time high, and many tech companies over-hired, but now businesses are reducing their workforce, with redundancies in the IT sector becoming more prominent. Although, hiring growth is still in double digits, driven largely by small and medium sized firms outside the big-tech space.

Robust performance from multinationals to continue   

The technology slow down aside, growth in the banking and finance market stays strong. According to Deputy Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, Ireland has a strong pipeline of investments from foreign-owned multinationals and there will be many positive announcements in the coming months. Ireland is hugely reliant on multinationals that employ over 275,000 people, or one in nine workers, and pay a large chunk of the country's income and corporate taxes.  

The Irish Central Bank sees modified domestic demand (MDD), its preferred economic growth measure, expanding by 2.3% next year and also evised up its forecast for this year to 6.4% due to a large, likely one-off increase in investment in the first half. This is reassuring news for employees in the country, especially in the face of layoffs at Twitter, Meta and Stripe.  

Banking and finance are Dublin’s strongest sectors 

In terms of banking and financial services, the picture is less clear. We’re expecting traditional institutions and professional services firms will endure but start-ups and challenger brands will have a harder time. Private equity firms and venture capitalists are putting increasing pressure on challenger businesses, which include FinTech's and cryptocurrency platforms, to prove profitability. This will prove incredibly challenging for many but particularly those in the consumer credit space. The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) is predicting consumers will favour traditional financial services intuitions instead.

Whilst it is without doubt that the post-pandemic froth in the market is long gone, most financial services firms will endure the next twelve months. These institutions will greatly benefit from increased savings from the aging population due to higher interest rates, investment in decarbonisation projects and infrastructure improvements.

How can Marks Sattin in Dublin help?      

Whether you are a technology professional who is uncertain about their future at their current company, or you are a finance professional who is looking for a new challenge, we have something on offer. We have a wide variety of opportunities available to people at all stages of their careers, which you can view here.

Alternatively, if you are a business looking to grow your team and take advantage of our market-leading insights, please submit a brief and a member of our team will be in touch with you.