Curated Intel from the Talent Tech Industry
May 1-6, 2023:
• Hacking the American market: Hackajob plans further US expansion with $25M Series B funding;
• Opening a new front in the War for Talent: Defense firms chase laid off & now keen tech talent;
• Raising a red flag: Four Federal agencies issue public warning about use of AI in the workplace;
• Staying above water gets easier for now: Job changers and others get paydays, but no promises;
• Saying goodbye to 10 blue links: Google announces major changes to its search engine results.
PLUS
• If you’re in the job board or talent technology business and tired of seeing your company treated like a second-class subset of HR Technology, you deserve the recognition and support you’ll receive at TAtech North America & The World Job Board Forum, coming up in Austin, Texas USA on May 22-24, 2023. It is the only conference totally dedicated to your bottom-line success in the North American market. The content and connections it delivers will accelerate your sales, reinforce your brand and give you a sustainable competitive advantage in the market. So, don’t delay; register today.
Hackajob sets sight on further US expansion following $25m series B funding
hackajob, the full stack technical hiring platform, announces a $25m Series B funding round led by Boston-based growth equity firm, Volition Capital, with participation from existing investors AXA Venture Partners and Foresight. The round enables hackajob’s significant plans to accelerate its expansion in the US and deliver on its vision of becoming the end-to-end hiring platform for enterprises to scale their technology teams. The investment comes shortly after hackajob entered the US market to help large enterprises and multinationals solve their chronic shortage of access to talented tech workers. 69% of US digital leaders claim they are unable to keep up with the pace of change due to a lack of access to talent - a challenge the hackajob full stack solution, powered by their proprietary AI models, can change. Since its US launch, hackajob has already built a significant talent pool with US-based candidates representing 25% of tech talent on their platform, making the region its primary growth market.
Company Press Release
Defense firms jump into new talent pool: laid-off tech workers
Last year, companies working in the aerospace, guided missile, space vehicle manufacturing and propulsion unit sectors all experienced a significant bump in growth, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). That comes as hundreds of tech companies, including Meta, Amazon and Microsoft, have laid off between 130,000 and 185,000 workers so far this year, according to estimates. Available data and other reporting from The Hill indicate that defense companies have been on something of a tech hiring spree. Recruiters are looking for experienced software engineers, cybersecurity experts and other high-skilled workers whose skills easily translate to defense technology. “For decades, the best and brightest in engineering weren’t always keen to enter the defense space,” said Andrew Wargofchik, a spokesperson for defense tech firm Epirus, noting his company grew by 36 percent last year. But now, the layoffs — combined with heightened global tensions — appear to be shifting the perspective for some tech workers. Wargofchik added it was “undeniable that current events, especially the war in Ukraine, are inspiring the next generation of tech leaders to pursue a career in the defense space to make an impact in the global defense of democracy.”
What does feds’ latest caution on AI mean for employers?
Leaders from four federal agencies issued a joint statement last week on the use of artificial intelligence and automated systems, outlining how existing U.S. laws and regulations apply to these technologies. The document, authored by heads of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission, follows months of growth for generative AI platforms, including OpenAI’s ChatGPT, that are gradually making their way into the workplace — at times, right under employers’ noses. “These automated systems are often advertised as providing insights and breakthroughs, increasing efficiencies and cost-savings, and modernizing existing practices,” regulators said. “Although many of these tools offer the promise of advancement, their use also has the potential to perpetuate unlawful bias, automate unlawful discrimination, and produce other harmful outcomes.” The agencies’ statement discussed the implications of AI in many areas, including workplaces. EEOC linked to a 2022 technical assistance document in which the commission explained how algorithmic decision-making tools, including AI-assisted tools, may violate the Americans with Disabilities Act. EEOC issued that document in conjunction with the DOJ. During a press call last year, DOJ Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke said the two agencies were “sounding the alarm” about employers’ reliance on AI, machine learning and similar processes. In last week’s statement, DOJ reiterated that its enforcement of constitutional provisions and federal statutes prohibiting discrimination apply to the workplace.
Will wages outpace inflation for long? It depends on the job
Wages are now finally beating inflation, according to the latest quarterly data on wage growth. But, with a widely expected recession still looming, that might not last. That is, unless you work in a certain industry. In the first three months of the year, median weekly earnings for full-time and salaried workers were 6.1% higher compared to the same period a year ago, outpacing the 5.8% increase in consumer prices during that period. And Friday’s jobs report showed that workers’ paychecks grew in April by 16 cents, or 0.5%, to $33.36 an hour on average. That was the biggest monthly increase since March 2022, though wage growth had gradually slowed since then. Workers who switched jobs are still raking in higher wages than those who choose to stay; and employees in industries struggling to hire, such as leisure and hospitality, are also enjoying fatter paychecks, economists said. “The folks who left one company and went to another are the ones who are still benefiting from wage growth,” said Morgan Llewellyn, chief data scientist at Jobvite.
Google plans to upgrade search with AI chat, video clips, Wall Street Journal reports
Google is planning to make its search engine more "visual, snackable, personal, and human," with a focus on serving young people globally, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday, citing documents. The move comes as artificial intelligence (AI) applications such as ChatGPT are rapidly gaining in popularity, highlighting a technology that could upend the way businesses and society operate. The tech giant will nudge its service further away from "10 blue links," which is a traditional format of presenting search results and plans to incorporate more human voices as part of the shift, the report said. At its annual I/O developer conference in the coming week, Google is expected to debut new features that allow users to carry out conversations with an AI program, a project code-named "Magi," WSJ added, citing people familiar with the matter. Generative AI has become a buzzword this year, with applications capturing the public's fancy and sparking a rush among companies to launch similar products they believe will change the nature of work.
Get the Recognition & Support You Deserve
If you’re in the job board or talent technology business and tired of seeing your company treated like a second-class subset of HR Technology, you deserve the recognition and support you’ll receive at TAtech North America & The World Job Board Forum, coming up in Austin, Texas USA on May 22-24, 2023. It is the only conference totally dedicated to your bottom-line success in the North American market. The content and connections it delivers will accelerate your sales, reinforce your brand and give you a sustainable competitive advantage in the market. Whether your company is a niche or general job board, aggregator, talent marketplace, programmatic platform, conversational AI solution, chatbot, ATS, recruitment marketing solution, recruitment advertising agency, CRM platform, interviewing or assessment system or talent technology consultancy, this event will supercharge your company. So, don’t delay; register today.