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👋 Welcome back! The job search game has officially entered its messy era. Candidates are offering cash bounties, sporting “desperate” profile badges, and creating LinkedIn content that would make a TikTok influencer blush. One ambitious job seeker is even offering $3,000 to anyone who helps land them a gig — taking “pay-to-play” quite literally…
Move over, carefully crafted cover letters—apparently the new currency is viral visibility. What’s next? Interpretive dance resumes? Job search reality shows? The Bachelor: Corporate Edition? (Actually… maybe we’re onto something there! 🌹)
Questions? Comments? Got a wild job search story? Reply to this email — we’d love to hear from you!
— Team Talivity ✨
Today’s edition is a 3-minute read. Here’s what to expect👇
🗞️ Workers choose work life balance over salary
💰️ Engineering jobs drop 26%
🌎️ Employer.com sells for $450K
💼 Future, TikTok hiring for TA roles
💻 Layoffs hit LinkedIn, Ford
📆 Can’t miss upcoming industry events
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NEWS
One Thing You Should Know This Week
SurveyMonkey: Money Can’t Buy Employee Loyalty
Think money is the magic key to keeping employees happy? Think again. A new SurveyMonkey report reveals that workers value work-life balance more than a fat paycheck — and that’s just the tip of the retention iceberg.
🖼️ The big picture.
The workplace is shifting dramatically, with traditional motivators taking a backseat to flexibility and wellbeing. Work-life balance has officially edged out compensation as the top priority for workers, while job security rounds out the top three. But here’s where it gets interesting: Gen Z is throwing out the old playbook entirely, with nearly a third prioritizing balance over everything else, and only 20% ranking pay as their main concern.
🧮 By the numbers:
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28% rank work-life balance as their #1 priority
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32% of Gen Z put balance first (only 20% care most about pay)
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27% say compensation is their top concern
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18% prioritize job security above all else
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51% would jump ship if forced back to office
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46% say they’re more productive at home
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86% report having a supportive manager
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82% admit to non-work activities during work hours
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39% spend over an hour daily on non-work tasks (we won’t tell if you won’t!)
💼 What this means for TAs.
Time to rewrite that retention playbook… While you’re crafting those compensation packages, remember that the corner office might matter less than the freedom to work from any corner. Focus on building flexible work arrangements and investing in supportive management — your employees are far more likely to be motivated when they have a great boss. And here’s a nugget worth its weight in gold: Workplace friendships are your secret weapon. Employees with work buddies are significantly more engaged and comfortable being themselves.
👔 What this means for job seekers.
While viral moments might get you noticed, don’t forget the basics. Know your worth — but make sure you’re measuring it in more than just dollars and cents. When evaluating opportunities, look at the whole package: flexibility options, management style, and company culture. SurveyMonkey’s research shows that work-life balance and supportive management matter more than compensation for long-term satisfaction. And here’s a reality check: only half of workers say they’d accept a return-to-office mandate without looking elsewhere. So, yes, know your worth, but also know what actually makes you happy at work.
🔮 Looking ahead.
Get used to a workplace that’s nothing like your parents’ 9-to-5. This trend of public job hunting isn’t going away — if anything, it’s likely to get more creative as AI makes traditional applications easier to mass-produce. Smart employers will need to balance the entertainment value of viral applications with actual talent assessment. Meanwhile, the real winners might be the companies that simply offer what workers want most: flexibility, support, and a life outside the office — whether in person or virtual. The future belongs to organizations that can balance productivity with personal life, and management authority with employee autonomy.
📥️ Read more at SurveyMonkey.
NUMBERS
Numbers That’ll Make You Think
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26% — The drop in engineering job postings since 2018. Silicon Valley’s going from “we’re hiring!” to “we’re hibernating.” (Yahoo Finance)
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10% — Proposed wage cuts at Volkswagen as the automaker threatens to close German factories for the first time in 87 years. (NYT)
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93% — Of young leaders who say AI can help them write better emails. Dear ChatGPT, plz make dis email sound more profesh xoxo. (Google Cloud Press Corner)
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900M — Square feet of empty office space in the US, enough to fill One World Trade Center 300 times. That’s a lot of empty water coolers… (ABC News)
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10,000 — Number of employees at Bosch being moved to a 35-hour workweek with reduced pay. (Yahoo Finance)
INDUSTRY INTEL
M&A Deals, Industry Moves, & Other Things To Know
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Enterprise software giant Workday tapped Rob Enslin as president and chief commercial officer, bringing his three decades of tech leadership experience from UiPath, Google Cloud, and SAP. (Workday)
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Athletic apparel leader Nike named Treasure Heinle as its new chief HR officer, succeeding Monique Matheson who’s retiring after 26 years. Do it? They just did it! (Business Wire)
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Retail giant Walmart confirmed changes to its DE&I initiatives but remains committed to employee resource groups and existing benefits. Hey, sometimes change comes in small packages… (HR Brew)
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The nursing profession is seeing a surge in male practitioners, with numbers nearly tripling since the early 2000s, making it officially time to retire those “Meet the Parents” jokes. (WSJ)
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Job platform domain Employer.com sold for $450,000 to Recruiter.com CEO Jesse Tinsley, who also owns BountyJobs and Before You Apply. He’s collecting job boards like Pokemon cards. (HR Tech Feed)
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Federal nursing home staffing rules could get scrapped under Trump, leaving 15,000 facilities scrambling. (NYT)
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Medical staffing leader Aya Healthcare announced plans to acquire Cross Country Healthcare for $615M. The doctor is definitely in. (Talivity)
OPEN ROLES
Jobs You Might Want (For Yourself!)
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Media powerhouse Future is hiring a Talent Acquisition Partner based in New York, NY
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Recruitment agency GQR is hiring a Recruiter based in Austin, TX
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Technology company AllSTEM Connections is hiring a Recruiter based in Heathrow, FL
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Entertainment leader Sony is hiring an HR Generalist based in Santa Monica, CA
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Recruitment company Alldus are hiring a Senior Recruitment Consultant based in New York, NY
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Social media giant TikTok is hiring a Non-Tech Sourcer based in Los Angeles, CA
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Tech company CyberCoders is hiring a Recruiter based remote, with headquarters in Minneapolis, MN
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Finance firm The Bolton Group is hiring an Executive Recruiter based remote, with headquarters in Washington, DC
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Digital transformation company Lumenalta is hiring a Recruiter based remote, with headquarters in Washington, DC
LAYOFFS
Places For You To Source Fresh Talent
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Steel maker ThyssenKrupp announced plans to cut up to 11,000 jobs in Germany by 2030, citing pressure from Asian competitors and high energy costs. (NYT)
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Automotive giant Ford will eliminate 4,000 jobs in Europe, primarily affecting plants in Germany and Britain, as electric vehicle sales slow. (NYT)
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Market research firm AlphaSense laid off 150 employees, about 8% of its workforce, following its acquisition of data provider Tegus. (Bloomberg Law)
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Professional networking platform LinkedIn cut approximately 200 jobs, impacting engineering and customer support teams. (The Information)
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Mental health unicorn Headspace is eliminating 13% of its workforce and transitioning its therapist network to part-time and contract roles. (BH Business)
👋 Thanks for reading!
December 5th, 2024
5 Minutes
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