The auto industry is currently struggling to attract talent to the industry, which could create a major recruitment crisis in the coming years. There are a few reasons as to why this might be, but it seems that a perceived lack of career progression opportunities could be a major reason why people are looking for work elsewhere.
Research
Car dealer, Jardine Motors, recently conducted research into the difficulties that the auto industry was having. The car dealership group questioned 1,000 UK workers from other industries along with 527 Jardine Motors Group employees about working in the industry and the research revealed some interesting insights from both groups. One of the key takeaways is that just 3% of those outside of the industry believed that there are opportunities to progress, which is something that 40% of those on the inside agreed with.
Other Findings
Interestingly, it seems that pay could also be a deterrent. 20% of 18 to 24-year-olds would not consider a career in the auto industry because they do not think that it pays as well as other industries. On top of this, 53% of those working outside of the sector did not like commission-based roles, so it seems that there may have to be new pay initiatives in order to attract today’s younger workers.
What Do Career Opportunities Look Like?
While it might look to outsiders that there are not many opportunities in the auto industry, you will find that this is not true and there are all kinds of different roles with career profession opportunities and a healthy salary. Additionally, the auto industry is going through growth with many developments in autonomous and green motoring, so it could actually be a good time to enter the auto industry.
Popular Roles
So, what kind of roles are worth looking into? A quality testing engineer is one role that could be appealing as someone that is responsible for testing every component of a vehicle. For those more interested in sales, an automotive sales manager could be a rewarding role taking a car dealership to success and helping people to find the right vehicle for their needs. For those with more of an interest in automobile design and engineering, an automotive engineer will serve in a team responsible for design, development, manufacturing and testing and this can be incredibly rewarding.
The research shows that the auto industry is struggling to attract talent, which could be a major issue moving forward as the auto industry continues to grow. While it is a problem, it seems that this is due to the way in which the industry is perceived and actually it can provide plenty of opportunities, progression and interesting and well-paid roles.
