The engineering industry is diverse and serves an important role in various industry areas. It is frequently associated with heavy industry and the hard hat job function. Given this image, those in engineering recruitment may find it difficult to overcome. On the other hand, engineering can range from new drug research improvements to telecommunications advancements.

Engineering is divided into sub, which includes:

• Aerospace 

• Chemical

• Infrastructure and construction

• Building and property maintenance

• Automotive

• Electronic

• Food Manufacturing

• Technology of Information

• Biological Sciences

• Defense Ministry

• Environmental and geographic information

Job Opportunities in Engineering

To meet the industry employment demands forecasted to 2024, it is believed that engineering companies will need to recruit 265,00 skilled workers annually. That amounts to quite a significant talent pipeline required by engineering recruitment to deliver. However, partnering with a recruitment companies like Primus Workforce makes that job a lot more easier for the organizations.

However, the education system does not meet the demand for people with engineering skills. It shows shortfall between 37,000 and 59,000 engineering graduates each year to fill key engineering roles forecasted by Engineering UK.

Important Employment Opportunities

 Industry-wise

• Some engineering areas are expanding, while others are contracting. Industries with high growth rates are those focused on information and communications. Those in the manufacturing sector, on the other hand, are witnessing a downturn.

• 4% of engineering employees work for firms with 50 to 499 people. 34.2 percent of employees worked for businesses with fewer than 25 employees, while 18.4 percent worked for businesses with more than 500 employees (ONS Labour Force Survey, 2016)

• In businesses with fewer than 25 employees, distribution and transportation had the highest proportion of engineering employees (69.7 percent ). This was followed by building (46.1%), machinery repair (40.0%), wood and paper manufacture (39.0%), metal manufacturing (38.1%), textiles and clothing (35.3%), and professional services (35.1 percent ). Vehicle manufacture had the biggest share of employees in large enterprises with 500 or more employees (48.8 percent), followed by military and other industries (46.1 percent), food, drink, and tobacco (26.9 percent), and energy and water supply (26.5 percent ).

• Distribution and transportation (69.7 percent), construction (46.1 percent), machinery repair (40.0 percent), wood and paper manufacturing (39.0 percent), metal manufacturing (38.1 percent), textiles and clothing (35.3 percent), and professional services (35.3 percent) accounted for the majority of companies with fewer than 25 employees (35.1 percent).

• Industries that contributed to most of the enterprises with 500 or more employees were car manufacturing (48.8 percent), defense and other sectors (46.1 percent), food, drink, and tobacco (26.9 percent), and energy and water supply (26.5 percent). 

Occupation-wise

• Communication and computing (85.4 percent), Professional Services (78.9 percent), and Mining had the highest representation of management, professional, and technical staff (63.8 percent). Distribution and transportation (16.2 percent), wood and paper (26.6 percent), food drink, and tobacco (26.6 percent) had the lowest rates (27.7 percent).

• Distribution and transportation (54.8 percent), building (43.7 percent), and machinery repair (40.3 percent) all required skilled craft labor.

• The industries with the most semi-skilled or unskilled workers were food, drink, and tobacco (53.3 percent), textiles and clothes (31.8 percent), and machinery (28 percent).

Certifications and Key Abilities

The skills and certifications required to cater to an industry with a varied range of industries are as diversified.

Degree-level qualifications are frequently required for professional and specialized professions. Many of the top USA institutions offer degree programs relating to STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Manufacturing). To attract more lucrative career opportunities, engineers can study for FE and give FE and PE exams to obtain professional engineers license.

• Architecture, building, and planning 

• Biological Sciences 

• Computer Sciences 

• Civil Engineering 

• Mechanical Engineering 

• Aerospace Engineering 

• Electrical Engineering 

• Chemical Engineering 

• Maritime and Geo Sciences 

• Mathematical Sciences

• Physical Sciences 

• Medical Sciences

Recruiting Recent Graduates

The rapidly changing environment of work skills required and the talents that new graduates give is one of the primary problems for the UK Engineering industry.

Engineering has struggled to attract students to graduate programs and Modern Apprenticeship Schemes. 

• A failure to attract enough of the right kind of young people to study engineering, partly due to a poor image 

• Declining interest in doing math and physics at ‘A’ level 

• Continuing low take-up by women on engineering courses 

• Attractions of alternative options, particularly studying IT.

The Future Environment

There will be 1,170,000 graduate and technician engineering positions among the 2.5 million available. In this employment situation, the following industries are expected to account for the majority of these graduate and technician vacancies:

• 29.8 percent are in construction; 24.7 percent are in manufacturing.

• 18.9 percent – information and communication

• Professional, scientific, and technological activities accounted for 15.8 percent of total activity.

• Other industries – 10.8 percent

How Can Human Resource Managers Recruit Top Engineering Talent?

Only 32% of organizations employ strategies to attract or retain talent, according to PWC’s 17th Annual Global CEO Survey – Key Findings in the Industrial Manufacturing Industry.

Companies that execute a people management plan will certainly profit as the environment of employer-employee relationships evolves.

Below are mentioned some critical elements for building a people management plan.

1. Create a powerful brand message for recruits:

This is no more adequate to meet the bare minimum in terms of compensation, benefits, job stability, and prospects for promotion.

As the younger generation joins the market, they are highly attracted by its brand principles, working atmosphere, and prospects for training and growth. Companies must build an engaging message to recruit top personnel.

This will lead to higher profitability by establishing an appealing image that will motivate students and graduates to pursue a career in engineering. As a result of STEM talents being transferable to other areas such as software and finance, top engineering talent is poached.

2. Broaden your talent network: 

In today’s competitive climate, organizations that wait to compete for students after graduation may discover that: 

• Students have chosen different paths, or 

• Top potential is already recognized by opportunistic recruiters.

Reach out to schools and colleges to engage youngsters in your brand and the numerous options. Some corporations provide scholarships to engineering students who show exceptional academic potential.

Using your company’s online presence and social media outreach to promote your brand to prospective top talent can be a terrific approach to do so.

With so much information available to millennia’s online, they are no longer limited to choosing jobs and sectors. They select a brand that is consistent with their values and goals.

3. Training and development that is readily available

Star players will demand organizations to take a vital role in their skills and personal development. As new technology and innovations enter the engineering industry, the adoption of new skills will be required quickly.

Young talent will want to keep their Resume competitive in the industry while also ensuring they have the skills and expertise to advance in their career.

Companies should make training tools and programs readily available for employees as online training and eLearning become more widely available.

Companies should also put in place an on boarding process for new hires. The on boarding process is critical for ensuring that new hires are engaged with the brand corporate culture and have clear direction on how to perform in their role.

4. Form an experienced HR team

According to Survey, most industrial CEOs lack confidence in their HR departments to locate the right personnel.

As stated in this book, the industry’s need for talent is vital to its success.

HR professionals are frequently generalists or have advanced from administrative positions. They frequently lack the specialized skills or knowledge required to attract and retain top employees.

HR departments, for example, may excel at maintaining employee relations but lack the necessary abilities to attract top talent. If you lack the necessary expertise in-house or have a small HR team, consider outsourcing certain tasks to a professional engineering recruitment firm.

Steps of recruitment

• Engineering vacancy qualification

 • Engineering candidate attraction 

• Candidate screening, CV presentation, feedback, and interviews

 • Job offer management, start dates, and aftercare

Hence by following the above article, you will be able to educate yourself on how engineering recruitment is done. This article showcases a complete HR guide to engineering recruitment.