Manufacturers have increased the number of online job ads steadily in 2011.  Despite being nowhere near the industry high in 2007, they are ramping up recruiting in several fields, including Engineering.  In May 2011, the manufacturing sector placed more than 13,000 new online job ads for Engineers and broke a 4-year record number of ads by manufacturers for this field.

Hiring Demand for Engineers in the US over the past 4 years

Source: WANTED Analytics

 

Employers and recruiting agencies in California have posted the most online job ads, over 2,100 new  ads in May. This represents a 90% increase from May 2010.  The top three employers in California were Broadcom, Qualcomm and Lockheed Martin – all of which had surges in ad volume for Engineers in May.  The San Jose metropolitan area had the most demand, seeing 665 online job ads and representing an 85% increase.  Los Angeles was close behind with 572 online job ads, up 48% from May 2010.  Although San Diego was the 3^rd highest metro area, they actually had the greatest increase of any area in California with 192% growth from last year.

Top Metro Areas in California Recruiting

Engineers within the Manufacturing Sector

Source: WANTED Analytics

 

Although this rise in hiring demand is a good sign for the manufacturing industry and U.S. employment, California may be facing an Engineering talent shortage. Employers and recruiters in California will be highly competitive when sourcing candidates for open positions and are likely to see challenges. Looking at San Jose, their talent pool has been reduced from 18 potential candidates in the workforce per job advertised in May 2010 to only 9 candidates in May 2011, according to the Hiring Scale ^TM. Recruiting conditions in San Jose fall well below the US average of 40 potential candidates per open position.

Hiring Scale for Manufacturing Engineers in San Jose, CA

Other cities in the Pacific region may find it easier to recruit for Engineers. For example, Seattle-based manufacturers placed 330 online job ads in this field.  Although this is up 30% from May 2010, the talent pool here is larger than many other West Coast cities and recruiters are likely to source candidates faster than the US average.

Hiring Scale for Manufacturing Engineers in Seattle, WA