With new generation of workers, Korean employers prioritize personal qualities over credentials, survey finds
A recent survey has revealed that over half of South Korean companies are shifting their focus when evaluating job candidates, placing greater emphasis on personal qualities like responsibility and communication skills, than traditional credentials.
According to the survey conducted by job-search platform Saramin, 58 percent of responding companies said the qualities they prioritize when selecting new hires are different from the ones they looked for before the 2020s. The tendency was stronger at large firms, with 70.6 percent of the companies with 300 or more employees saying so. The survey was conducted on 231 companies across South Korea
When asked why their standards have changed, 50 percent said it was “because the younger generation of workers have different characteristics than in the past,” followed by “in order to respond to a rapidly-changing business environment” (26.9 percent), “due to changes in work methods” (20.1 percent), and “due to changes in social and cultural perception” (18.7 percent). The respondents were allowed to pick multiple answers.
“Responsibility,” picked by 31.3 percent of the respondents, topped the list of important employee qualities, followed by “communications ability” picked by 30.6 percent. “Positive attitude (26.1 percent),” “adaptability to the organization (23.1 percent),” “Professional expertise (23.1 percent),” “diligence (20.1 percent)” were also among popular qualities.
“The 2020s marked the time when the working environment (of Korea) changed due to the (COVID-19) pandemic and digitalization of the office. The introduction of the generation into the workforce also affected spreading of a new working culture,” Saramin said. “People who can do their job immediately upon being hired ares more sought after than ever.”
About 79.7 percent said that they have actually rejected a job applicant who have substantial credentials, but lack the qualities that they were looking for.
Conversely, 84 percent of the companies said they hired an applicant who had the right qualities but lacked credentials.
