Job advertisements become increasingly demanding in ten years
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Companies are setting more stringent requirements for job seekers in their job advertising than they did ten years ago.
The ideal employee in today’s want ads is a winner with an ability to tolerate pressure, and a high sense of work ethics.
Ideal potential employees are expected to be committed to the job, to seek results, and to take responsibility. They should also be accustomed to constant changes, and be eager to learn.
Helsingin Sanomat studied changes in the content of job ads placed in the newspaper on three Sundays in July of 1996 and 2006. A total of 637 such advertisements were published in Helsingin Sanomat on the days in question.
Ten years ago the most sought-after qualities in a job applicant were flexibility, capacity for cooperation, and initiative. Now, alongside those qualities have come the ability to withstand pressure and a willingness to achieve results.
Other frequent requirements are commitment to a job and a willingness to acquire new knowledge and skills.
Today’s requirements generally include training for the field in question, good linguistic skills, and thorough knowledge of the sector; ten years ago typical job ads required a basic education, and basic training in the field in question. Nokia would even hire students who were in the final stages of earning their degrees.
Anna-Maija Lehto, who has made studies on working conditions for Statistics Finland for 20 years, and Ulla Groop, a leading recruitment consultant for the recruitment agency JL Consultants, attribute the trend to the fact that Finns are better trained than they were ten years ago, leading to tougher competition for jobs.
Lehto sees some potential problems arising from the rising demands.
"Studies on working conditions have shown that people feel stressed in their work, and that pressures are constantly growing."
She also notes that it is not always easy for recent graduates, who often have little work experience and do not have much of a chance to meet all expectations.
Ulla Groop, who has been involved in direct recruitment consultation for companies, feels that one of the greatest changes is that managerial staff are considerably younger than they used to be.
Helsingin Sanomat
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| 7.8.2006 - TODAY |
 Job advertisements become increasingly demanding in ten years
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