Sales & marketing - what are the labor market trends in this industry?

Rising inflation, high fuel prices, the economic slowdown, and geopolitical uncertainty are just some of the challenges the industry is facing. These, in turn, have had a direct impact on consumer spending. Companies have been looking for a variety of solutions to influence customers and their positive shopping experience to improve current sentiment and increase sales. Omnichannel, e-commerce, m-commerce have played a major role in these activities, and their position has been further strengthened. Stores have introduced faster payments and even entered foreign markets.

Due to high inflation, there has been a lot of pressure on salaries, and the possibility of receiving higher salaries has been the main motivation for changing jobs. Over the past year, salaries have increased by an average of 15-25% in the industry and as much as 30% in manufacturing. Concerned about increased turnover, some companies have included increases in their planned budgets for 2023, but they are not so optimistic. These are increases of 6-20% of salary, with most organizations opting for 10% increases.

A side-effect of such a budgetary burden could be a reduction in enrolments in 2023.

Looking at the skills sought by companies, we see a continued high demand for professionals with a sales and marketing profile. This trend applies to the FMCG sector, retail especially in the industrial sector, electronics, construction and B2B. Employers are often looking for candidates who are experienced in a particular sector, who know the industry and the specifics of a particular market, and who have developed a high level of soft skills. Digital or social media specialists are also in demand, as are candidates for the positions of key account manager, export manager, store manager, sales assistant, and sales representatives.

In the industrial sector, despite the ongoing challenges of disrupted supply chains or rising costs, we still see a high demand for sales engineers and technical-commercial consultants. We are looking for candidates with sales experience and technical knowledge who have a degree in areas such as mechanical engineering, automation, robotics, and who speak English.

Author: Jolanta Cieleń, Permanent Placement Team Leader