Job Market Shifts

If you're wondering, "Is a Machine Learning Certification worth it in 2025?" here are some honest thoughts 👇 Short answer - Yes, ML certifications are valuable. They can lead to real career growth, better salaries, and help you stand out in an increasingly crowded talent pool. 𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗵 𝗜𝘁 1. Career Growth: Over 60% of certified professionals report getting promoted, and around 1 in 3 see salary increases, often above 20%. Certifications help you pivot into ML roles faster and take on more technical responsibilities. 2. Stand Out in a Crowded Field: Hiring managers are flooded with resumes, and if you have a certification from Google Cloud, AWS, or Microsoft they assume that you’re applying it in cloud-native, production-ready ways. 3. Industry Recognition: Top-tier certs like: ✅ Google Cloud Professional ML Engineer ✅ Amazon Web Services (AWS) Certified ML- Specialty ✅ Microsoft Azure AI Engineer Associate ✅ Databricks Certified ML Professional …are recognized by employers and often show up as "preferred qualifications" in job listings. 4. Employer Value: Typically, certified employees are seen as more productive, innovative, and independent. Companies say they trust certified hires to build models that actually work in production, I have always seen it as a requirement in big techs atleast. 5. Rising Demand: AI/ML jobs are expected to grow 40% between 2023-2027, and the fastest-growing demand is for engineers who understand ML and how to ship it, exactly what most cloud certs focus on. 𝗪𝗵𝗼 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗜𝘁 → Career Switchers: If you'r trying to move from product, business, or academic backgrounds into AI? A cert gives you structure and credibility to break into the field. → Tech Pros (Early to Mid Career) If you're already a SWE or data engineer? A cloud ML cert can help you transition into ML roles or MLOps roles and get noticed for internal promotions. → Hands-On Learners: Certs with project-based components, like deploying models on GCP’s Vertex AI or AWS SageMaker are especially valuable. Employers love to see that! 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗞𝗲𝗲𝗽 𝗶𝗻 𝗠𝗶𝗻𝗱 → Cert != Experience: A cert alone won’t get you the job. Pair it with real projects: open source work, GitHub repos, Kaggle comps, or cloud ML demos. → Certification vs. Certificate: A certification involves a proctored exam and industry recognition (like AWS, GCP). A certificate might just mean you completed a few videos. So, it's not the same weight. So, Be Selective! Skip generic "ML Bootcamp" or $10 Udemy-style courses unless they include real-world, resume-worthy projects. Rather, focus on programs that teach tools actually used in production. My 2 cents 🫰 An ML certification in 2025 is absolutely worth it, IF you choose the right one and back it up with hands-on experience. It's a good asset that signals your skill, curiosity, and job-readiness :)

This is nothing new if you've been paying attention, but LinkedIn data now confirms that hiring across tech-related fields is down about 20% from August 2018 in what they're calling a "white collar recession". But during that time, we've also had the ups and downs of "The Great Resignation" where people left their jobs in droves to jump into tech fields. We've had the "break into tech" folks (many of whom have not worked in tech beyond a 6-month contract themselves) selling dreams of easy pathways into high-paying remote jobs in tech if you just sign up for this course or that bootcamp. So the field has been flooded with more applicants competing for an ever-decreasing number of jobs. Rejection after rejection (if you're lucky enough to even hear back) is leaving folks questioning their skills and their value when it's really not about them, it's about the market. And there's also an interesting data point (that I think many recruiters can validate) that even with huge numbers of applicants, hiring processes are taking longer - often due to poor systems and hiring teams that may be more selective than ever in an environment where they have to fight to get every role approved. So what can you do if you're a jobseeker? 1. Pay attention to who is hiring. LinkedIn notes that healthcare has defied this trend as one of the few industries that has increased. Dig into jobs reports and identify the fields that are seeing increases and focus your energy there. You have a better chance with healthcare, education, and social services, or with the business/tech side of "blue collar" industries like construction, manufacturing, and transportation than you do for tech/SaaS companies. You have a better chance with on site/hybrid over remote. 2. Be realistic about your skills and qualification. When the field is competitive, companies are not hiring someone with 70% of the skills when they have a large pool of folks who has 100% of the skills. There's a decent chance a lot of folks are spinning their wheels and being hit with a lot of rejection unnecessarily. Assess your resume and application through the eyes of a recruiter or hiring manager who doesn't know your aptitude for learning, your interest, your passions...they only know what they see on the resume - employers, industries, job titles, results. And if you're on the hiring side: 1. High applicant volume should not be a surprise at this point. You can and should have systems and people in place to handle it. If you don't invest in it now. That poor candidate experience will hurt you at some point, and cost you the best talent. 2. Bring empathy with you at every step. You're talking to people who have faced rejection after rejection, who have negative bank accounts, who are worried about survival. Be thoughtful about your communication. Get back to people. Look past some nerves or a few extra follow up emails. Realize that this is all coming from anxiety and desperation.

Behind every opportunity is a relationship, and behind every relationship is a conversation. Networking is about building real connections that last and have the potential to help you find your next opportunity. Data shared by the University of Maryland’s Department of Economics indicates you won’t find 70% of available jobs on any site that posts open positions. Those positions are usually found on a company’s internal network, often by referral. In other words, relationships can make the difference between finding a job or not. That’s no surprise to me. Throughout my journey, from engineer to investor, relationships have been a constant driver of growth. Mentors, colleagues and peers have not only opened doors, but also challenged my thinking, sharpened my skills and inspired my vision. Here’s what I have learned: - Be curious: Ask questions that show you care about people’s stories. - Be intentional: Connect with purpose, not just for your own gain. - Be consistent: Follow up, follow through and add value where you can. Networking isn’t a one-time event. It requires maintaining ongoing relationships rooted in trust and genuine interest in other people’s lives. Whether you’re just starting out on your professional journey or deep into your field, relationships are what power careers.

There are 1.1M credentials but our latest research finds that only 12% offer significant wage gain earners wouldn’t have otherwise gotten. The Burning Glass Institute is launching the Credential Value Index to show which ones work, evaluating the outcomes from 23,000 non-degree credentials from over 2,000 providers, including every certification in America—from Coursera digital marketing certificates to OSHA certifications. To see whether they actually deliver for workers, we analyzed how each changed the course of the careers of 7 million people who had earned them. While only 1 in 3 credentials meet a minimum threshold vs. counterfactual peers for either boosting wages, facilitating career changes, or moving people up within their field, we still found 8,000 credentials that really move the needle for workers—often in ways that are transformative. The top decile of credentials yields annual wage gains of nearly $5,000 vs. counterfactual peers, increases by 7x vs. bottom credentials the chances of switching jobs into an aligned career, and boosts by 17x the probability of an earner’s getting promoted within their current field. We found wide variances in outcomes even for the same credential across named providers–and across the portfolio of credential offerings of even high-reputation providers. That says that learners can’t just trust brands and they can’t just trust that a credential will help just because it’s in a high-paying field. Instead, they need real data to help them make informed decisions. Our goal in this work is practical: to put these evaluations in the hands of workers and learners, employers, education institutions & training providers, and policymakers. The Credential Value Index–available through our Navigator site available on https://lnkd.in/e_BTX9bs –makes all 23,000 evaluations accessible to the public, with easy-to-understand metrics of performance, comparisons with other credentials, and helpful context, like which roles earners find themselves working in, which employers they’re working for, and which skills they master along the way. Our research is summarized in an American Enterprise Institute working paper which I coauthored with AEI senior fellow Mark Schneider and Burning Glass Institute colleagues Shrinidhi Rao, Scott Spitze, and Debbie Wasden. You can find it on https://lnkd.in/ezynMA-v. I want to express my deep thanks to Ellie Bertani, Matt Zieger, and the GitLab Foundation for all they have done to support this initiative. I am grateful for your partnership. And a big thank you to Patti Constantakis and Sean Murphy at Walmart for the opportunity to test this framework in a real-world laboratory. Finally, the Credential Value Index builds on a close partnership with Jobs for the Future (JFF). Many thanks to Maria Flynn, Stephen Yadzinski, and their terrific team. #education #careers #highereducation #learning #skills

I’ve reviewed 1,000+ LinkedIn profiles over the past 5 years. Here are 8 tips to turn your LinkedIn profile into a job-generating machine: 1. Upgrade Your Profile Picture Like it or not, your profile picture is your first impression. Make it a good one: - Upload your PP to Photofeeler .com - Analyze the feedback - Reshoot/edit your picture based on the data Repeat until your scores are good! 2. Leverage Keywords The right keywords help you show up in more searches. Here's how to find them: - Find 5+ job descriptions for target roles - Paste them all into ResyMatch.io's JD scanner - Save the top 15 skills Weave them into the rest of your profile! 3. Write A Killer Headline I like to use this headline formula: [Keywords] | [Skills] | [Results-Focused Value Proposition] Example for a data scientist: Data Scientist | Python, R, Tableau | I Help Hospitals Use Big Data To Reduce Readmission Rates By 37% 4. Write A Killer About A great About section has 3 parts: - A short paragraph that speaks to your job, years of experience, and value prop. - Five "case study" bullets that showcase specific results. - Your email w/ a CTA for people to connect with you. Include keywords! 5. Leverage Your Featured Section It’s hard to convey your value on a resume or in an About section. This is your chance to show people what you’ve done on your terms. Include things like: - Case studies of your work - Content you’ve created - Posts you’ve written 6. Skills Matter LinkedIn uses profile Skills sections to rank candidates. Here’s how to boost your rank: - Add every keyword from your ResyMatch scan - Choose the top 5 most relevant skills - Ask colleagues, friends, family, & classmates for endorsements (aim for 5) 7. Engage & Support Others Comments can generate tons of profile views! Here’s how: - Find 10+ thought leaders in your target space - Bookmark their post feed - Check their feeds daily - Leave a supportive, valuable comment on each new post Repeat for a minimum of 30 days 8. Create Content! Content is networking at scale. One post can reach more people than your entire connection base. It also allows you to showcase value in your own words, on your own terms. It can feel scary, but only 1% of people do it—and the returns are huge.

I got fired twice because I had poor soft skills. Then, I became VP at Amazon, where my job was more than 80% based on soft skills. This was possible because I stopped being an outspoken, judgmental critic of other people and improved my soft skills. Here are 4 areas you can improve: Soft skills are one of the main things I discuss with my coaching clients, as they are often the barrier between being a competent manager and being ready to be a true executive. Technical skills are important, but soft skills are the deciding factor between executive candidates a lot more than technical skills are. Four “soft skill” areas in which we can constantly improve are: 1) Storytelling skills Jeff Bezos said, “You can have the best technology, you can have the best business model, but if the storytelling isn’t amazing, it won’t matter.” The same is true for you as a leader. You can have the best skills or best ideas, but if you can’t communicate through powerful storytelling, no one will pay attention. 2) Writing Writing is the foundation of clear communication and clear thinking. It is the main tool for demonstrating your thinking and influencing others. The way you write will impact your influence, and therefore will impact your opportunities to grow as a leader. 3) Executive Presence Executive presence is your ability to present as someone who should be taken seriously. This includes your ability to speak, to act under pressure, and to relate to your team informally, but it goes far beyond any individual skill. Improving executive presence requires consistently evaluating where we have space to grow in our image as leaders and then addressing it. 4) Public Speaking As a leader, public speaking is inevitable. In order the get the support you need to become an executive, you must inspire confidence in your abilities and ideas through the way you speak to large, important groups of people. No one wants to give more responsibility to someone who looks uncomfortable with the amount they already have. I am writing about these 4 areas because today’s newsletter is centered around how exactly to improve these soft skills. The newsletter comes from member questions in our Level Up Newsletter community, and I answer each of them at length. I'm joined in the newsletter by my good friend, Richard Hua, a world class expert in emotional intelligence (EQ). Rich created a program at Amazon that has taught EQ to more than 500,000 people! The 4 specific questions I answer are: 1. “How do I improve my storytelling skills?” 2. “What resources or tools would you recommend to get better in writing?” 3. “What are the top 3 ways to improve my executive presence?” 4. “I am uncomfortable talking in front of large crowds and unknown people, but as I move up, I need to do this more. How do I get comfortable with this?” See the newsletter here: https://lnkd.in/gg6JXqF4 How have you improved your soft skills?

The January JOLTS report out today shows employers & workers alike are sitting tight in this job market: 1. The hires rate fell to 3.6%, continuing a string of weak gross hiring numbers, comparable to levels seen in 2017. Employers are holding back on hiring aggressively as they wait to see how the economy will evolve after a few years of more rapid hiring. Additionally, weak hiring may help explain why worker sentiment has been soft as job seekers find it difficult to find their next career move. 2. And that shows up in quits: The quits rate fell to 2.1% as workers sit tight. If workers lack confidence in the job market, they are unlikely to quit, instead prioritizing job security over career/income growth. 3. Despite a raft of layoff headlines in January, measured layoffs actually ticked down to 1,572,000. This is low by historical standards (layoffs averaged ~1.8m/month in the 2010s) and suggests employers are pulling back on hiring but still holding onto existing workers. 4. Openings fell slightly to 8,863,000 in January, continuing their unsteady downward trend. I would caution against just focusing on openings as a measure of job market health. While openings are still very high, other indicators from JOLTS like hires or quits tell a story of a job market that is flirting with weakness outright or at least pointing to softer wage growth ahead. Overall, this points to a job market where job seekers & employees feel like there aren't good opportunities on the open market and are sitting tight as a result. Thankfully, layoffs remain low, but unless employers feel the confidence to reaccelerate hiring, the pause we are in may make it harder for new/returning workers to get their foot in the door and existing workers to level up their careers. #economy #news #JOLTS

Recent data from LinkedIn reveals that 50% of job applicants are inclined not to work in the office full time, and 40% of current employees would consider quitting if forced to return full-time. Despite this, the number of job listings offering remote work has decreased significantly, leading to an ongoing tension between companies and employees regarding remote work and returning to the office.     In his recent FastCompany article, Dr. Gleb Tsipursky delves into strategies for navigating this evolving landscape. Gleb opposes a one-size-fits-all approach and recommends adopting a team-led model. In this model, management collaborates with teams to customize office arrangements based on their unique requirements. He emphasizes the importance of open dialogues with employees about the purpose of the office and aligning on its role. This kind of flexibility and openness is at the root of the approach we’re taking within my own team.    To cultivate workspaces that foster both productivity and individual growth, we must prioritize things like collaboration, social interaction, mentorship, and team cohesion within the office. By actively listening to employees and adopting a thoughtful approach, we can find the most successful #HybridWork solution. 

Fewer people are leaving companies, but more people who do (voluntarily or involuntarily) aren't finding a new role within the same calendar year. As ongoing jobless claims continue to rise, I analyzed the data on 16M+ white-collar professionals who left a company from 2019 through 2024. Here's how the data breakdown by year 📆 2019: "The Last Normal Year" What even is normal anymore? 2019 was still far from "normal" as we remained in the thick of ZIRP-era hiring and an employee-favorable job market. High departure volume was coupled with high rates of people finding their next role quickly. Then... the chaos started. 2020: "The Pandemic" The pandemic kicked off the last 5 years of job market chaos. Many people lost their jobs in the early days of the pandemic, only to have the job market tilt in favor of employees and remote work situations by the second half of the year. 2021: "The Great Resignation" The headlines in 2021 told stories of people quitting jobs on their first day, working multiple remote jobs at once, or job-hopping with >10% pay bumps multiple times a year. Everyone was changing jobs... mostly voluntarily and mostly with another job already lined up. 2022: "The Calm Before the Storm" Overall departure volume was the lowest, largely driven by the tail end of the ZIRP-era hiring binge early in the year and a lull in activity before the earliest rounds of mass layoffs started in Q4. 2023: "The Great Termination" As mass layoffs rattled the white-collar employment landscape, the share of people who left a company and didn't find a new role within the year climbed. Layoffs were the primary driver behind departure volume and hiring freezes left more impacted employees out in the cold. 2024: "The Great Stay" More people stayed at their current company, with many clutching to their existing roles, driving the total volume of departures down. But, the other side of the "stay" is that people stayed unemployed for longer with almost half of the people who left a company in 2024 not finding a role before the year's end. Will 2025 be better or worse for white-collar job seekers? A glimpse of hope comes from the data on recruiter hiring from late 2024 (previous post linked in comments). Recruiter hiring is generally a leading indicator for overall hiring. After all, you need to hire the people who will do the hiring first. #jobs #employment #hiring

New research from MIT reveals an interesting automation paradox - AI/automation can simultaneously replace experts in one field while creating more expert jobs in another. Let's take a look at two examples from the research - bookkeepers vs. inventory clerks. Both got heavily automated between 1980-2018 but with different outcomes. Bookkeeper employment fell 33% while wages rose 40%. Employment doubled for Inventory clerks, but wages fell 13%. This happened because automation removed the routine parts of bookkeeping (data entry), leaving behind the expert work (analysis, problem-solving). However, for inventory clerks, automation removed the expert parts (price calculations), leaving mostly generic tasks anyone could do. The researchers call this "expertise bifurcation" and it explains why predictions about AI displacement can be so difficult to predict. When looking at the average expertise level of more than 300 occupations over nearly 40 years, they found that when simpler tasks disappeared, jobs became more specialized, and often better paid, even as employment declined. However, when automation removed the more expert tasks, wages tended to fall as more people moved into the role. “Taxi drivers, for example, once relied on deep knowledge of local streets, which was a real differentiator. But with the arrival of GPS, that expertise was automated. The result is a more commoditized taxi service: lower wages, but many more drivers.” The researchers point out that this shift can create opportunities for new professions to open up "because automation removes the hardest parts that used to be out of reach." One of the key takeaways from this research is that it's not about whether your job can be automated - it's about whether AI will eliminate your expert tasks or your supporting tasks. If AI handles your routine work while you focus on judgment, creativity, and complex problem-solving? Your value just went up. If AI can do what makes you uniquely valuable? Different story. The question isn't "Will AI replace me?," but "Will AI make my expertise more scarce, or more common?" So - what do you think this means for sourcers and recruiters? Check out the article and link to the full research here: https://lnkd.in/eHW7zfSp #AI #FutureOfWork #Automation