A job fair in HCM City. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Hiring intentions among employers in Việt Nam strengthened in the fourth quarter, with 52 per cent of surveyed companies planning to increase headcount between October and December, according to a ManpowerGroup survey released this week.

Việt Nam's hiring outlook was stronger than the Asia Pacific and Middle East (APME) regional average of 33 per cent and the global average of 29 per cent, ranking third in the region and 11th globally among 42 markets surveyed.

Of the employers surveyed, 16 per cent expected to reduce staffing in the fourth quarter, while 32 per cent planned to keep headcount unchanged.

Automation reshapes hiring decisions

Company expansion remained the leading reason cited by employers planning to increase staffing, with 52 per cent of such companies identifying it as a hiring driver, broadly unchanged from the previous quarter.

Among companies planning workforce reductions, however, automation was the main factor, with 52 per cent citing reduced demand for certain roles because of automation. That compared with 24 per cent in the APME region and 22 per cent globally.

About four in 10 employers said economic challenges were negatively affecting staffing decisions.

"Business expansion remains the leading driver of recruitment, automation is changing how work is organised and which skills are most valued," said Nguyễn Thu Trang, head of Manpower Brand at Manpower Vietnam.

Companies were increasingly focusing recruitment on positions that directly support productivity, innovation and longer-term growth rather than simply expanding headcount, she said.

Skills shortages slow recruitment

Despite the growing use of artificial intelligence in recruitment, employers remained divided over whether technology was speeding up hiring.

Some 42 per cent of employers said their hiring process was faster than in 2025, while 40 per cent said it was slower. Another 16 per cent reported no change.

Skills shortages remained a major obstacle. About half of employers cited a lack of candidates, either because of insufficient applicants with the required skills or a shortage of qualified workers in the market.

A mismatch between candidate expectations and job requirements was cited by 43 per cent of employers as another recruitment challenge. The growing volume of AI-generated resumes was also making it harder for employers to identify suitable candidates, the survey found.

"AI is helping improve recruitment efficiency, but it is also introducing new barriers for employers seeking qualified candidates," Trang said, adding that employers needed to balance technology with human judgment and improve the candidate experience.

Meanwhile, some 57 per cent of employers in Việt Nam said they had increased hiring of entry-level workers compared with 2025, with the strongest demand in the information sector, where 77 per cent of employers reported expanding early-career recruitment.

Engineering roles accounted for 48 per cent of the positions where employers were increasing early-career hiring, followed by AI model and application development at 37 per cent, and traditional IT and data roles at 37 per cent.

The survey was conducted from July 1 to 31 among nearly 40,000 employers across 42 countries and territories. — BIZHUB