Nine out of Ten Africans are in the Wrong Job - ROAM Reports

A new research has indicated the obvious, that many Africans don't get the jobs they qualify for. The research was conducted by the ROAM (Ringier One Africa Media) Group. Most engage in their jobs just to escape hunger and unemployment. They basically bring no skill or relevant ones to drive organizational growth. 

Close to 90% of applicants that apply to a job position are objectively not a match to the role advertised, the report claims. Most of the employees investigated would have loved to channel their energy for entrepreneurial pursuits but claim to be financially incapable. Getting a job, any kind of job is a way of rescinding to fate.

There are also more causes to this phenomenon; a shortage of jobs and a fundamental misunderstanding of job requirements, both from employers and candidates.

This has been uncovered by research conducted by ROAM (Ringier One Africa Media), who is encompassing the market-leading job portals in West Africa (Jobberman) and East Africa (Brightermonday), as well as Executive Recruitment and HR Solutions firm The African Talent Company.

Figures from more than 12 million users, as well as from more than 100,000 employers, across Nigeria and Kenya in the last two years have been studied by the company.

The ROAM Head of Jobs, Matthew Page, on the background of the research said, “We have recently conducted a data review and were shocked by this huge gap. Our initial hypothesis was that this is due to a shortage of jobs, gaps in the labour markets, and desperation.

“However digging deeper into our database, our analysis found that many candidates were indeed qualified for other available jobs, but did not necessarily apply for these. African employers and our clients indeed face a challenge in hiring the right people.”

The company’s research further brought to light that an average job listing receives about 140 – 160 applications and could probably be more in densely populated urban territories.

This showcases that there are huge hiring efforts involved in the application and recruitment process, even before the interview.

This is both on the candidate's side, to launch this large number of wrong applications, as well as from the employer, to identify the 10% of right candidates, amidst a large number of unqualified applications.

“Hiring the right competency upfront typically returns 3x productivity for the employer. It also minimizes the on boarding time required to get an employee up to speed. That is why we have launched smart employer products in the last months. These facilitate a smooth hiring experience for employers, through tech-enabled shortlisting and matching products that identify the best candidate for the best position,” added Matthew Page.

The CEO of ROAM, Clemens Weitz, on the potential for economic growth said, “Our research clearly shows that the education of the African job market has a long way to go – both on the seeker and employer side. Solving this challenge will unlock tremendous latent economic potential. Imagine an efficient economy,where all employees sit in the job that is a perfect, natural fit for their individual nature. Productivity and satisfaction would skyrocket. AI and machine learning have tremendous potential, and we plan to fundamentally solve this challenge in 2019.”

Header Image Credit: AfDB