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IAB LinkedIn Reallocation Radar

The IAB LinkedIn industry switch radar maps current and future sideways movements of employees in the labour market. The radar is calculated by taking the average of two components:

  • Current switches: the current ratio of people changing to a new job in a different industry
  • Future switches: the current ratio of applications for jobs in a different industry relative to total applications

The IAB LinkedIn industry switch radar tracks switching behaviour almost in real time. In addition, the analysis of job applications provides a strong prognostic indicator of future switching behaviour. The radar is published every six months.

Job switches are recorded when a LinkedIn user updates their profile and assigns their new job to one of the 20 standard industries defined by the platform that differs from the industry they had selected for their previous role. Applications are measured using the online application form provided by LinkedIn. All data is aggregated and anonymised. Monthly time series are adjusted for seasonal effects.

One indicator of this is the IAB-LinkedIn sector change radar. It can be used to track movements on the labour market practically in real time. This is because a change is usually preceded by an application - and it is precisely this data that is available in LinkedIn. We use this data to create a leading indicator for the industry changes expected in the near future.

Job changes are measured when LinkedIn members update their profile and specify a job in another of the 20 industries standardised in LinkedIn. Applications are recorded via the online application form in LinkedIn. All data is aggregated and anonymised. The monthly time series are seasonally adjusted.

The result: after the coronavirus pandemic, the momentum of change has slowed once again with the energy crisis. Employees are currently switching comparatively little between sectors. This may be due to the fact that companies are increasingly holding on to their scarce labour force. However, there are signs of a trend reversal in 2024: Sector changes are stabilising and applications from other sectors are cautiously increasing.

The chart shows a graph consisting of three lines. The bottom line indicates the percentage of job changes from other sectors as a proportion of all hires. The time series begins at 30 percent and sees a brief increase at the start of the Covid crisis. It then falls below pre-crisis levels, normalises again from mid-2021 onwards, but declines once more from 2022. The top line shows the percentage of applications from other sectors as a proportion of all applications. The time series begins at 72 percent. It rises for approximately one year following the start of the Covid crisis. After that it falls below pre-crisis levels and sees a slight increase again from 2024. The middle line shows the trend of the IAB LinkedIn Sector Switch Radar, expressed as a percentage – this is the average of the two components. This time series rises briefly at the start of the Covid crisis and has been in continuous decline since 2022. Source: LinkedIn, own calculations.

Table: The IAB LinkedIn Reallocation Radar

Month/Year IAB LinkedIn Reallocation Radar, mean value of the components 1 and 2 Component 1: career transitions from other industries, shares in all hires in % Component 2: applications from other industries, shares in all applications in %
2019 January 51.05 30.14 71.96
2019 February 51.19 30.63 71.75
2019 March 51.65 31.18 72.11
2019 April 51.35 30.72 71.97
2019 May 51.16 30.66 71.65
2019 June 50.60 29.59 71.62
2019 July 51.10 30.45 71.74
2019 August 51.26 30.89 71.64
2019 September 50.85 30.22 71.48
2019 October 51.06 30.74 71.38
2019 November 51.37 31.18 71.56
2019 December 52.40 33.20 71.60
2020 January 51.01 30.35 71.68
2020 February 51.17 30.72 71.62
2020 March 51.79 31.43 72.16
2020 April 52.70 32.75 72.66
2020 May 51.68 30.47 72.90
2020 June 51.37 30.04 72.70
2020 July 51.06 29.33 72.79
2020 August 51.58 30.22 72.93
2020 September 51.36 29.71 73.01
2020 October 51.56 30.06 73.07
2020 November 50.92 29.03 72.80
2020 December 51.05 29.42 72.69
2021 January 51.40 29.90 72.89
2021 February 51.03 29.29 72.77
2021 March 51.04 29.61 72.48
2021 April 51.18 29.85 72.52
2021 May 51.18 29.98 72.38
2021 June 51.33 30.65 72.01
2021 July 50.97 29.96 71.98
2021 August 51.02 30.22 71.82
2021 September 51.00 30.63 71.37
2021 October 50.81 30.17 71.45
2021 November 51.33 30.86 71.80
2021 December 51.11 30.81 71.41
2022 January 51.13 30.77 71.50
2022 February 50.97 30.77 71.17
2022 March 50.85 30.46 71.25
2022 April 51.04 30.95 71.13
2022 May 51.12 31.11 71.12
2022 June 50.71 30.57 70.85
2022 July 50.98 31.19 70.76
2022 August 50.58 30.39 70.76
2022 September 50.56 30.27 70.86
2022 October 50.76 30.65 70.88
2022 November 50.13 29.81 70.46
2022 December 50.48 30.28 70.69
2023 January 50.36 30.25 70.47
2023 February 50.12 29.53 70.70
2023 March 49.98 29.43 70.54
2023 April 49.82 29.35 70.30
2023 May 49.69 28.94 70.44
2023 June 49.74 28.90 70.57
2023 July 50.07 29.38 70.76
2023 August 49.46 28.45 70.47
2023 September 49.78 28.96 70.60
2023 October 49.49 28.86 70.13
2023 November 49.37 28.52 70.22
2023 December 49.34 28.55 70.14
2024 January 49.14 28.38 69.90
2024 February 49.45 28.51 70.40
2024 March 49.71 28.61 70.81
2024 April 49.32 27.98 70.65
2024 May 49.14 27.79 70.49
2024 June 49.49 28.13 70.85
2024 July 49.27 27.80 70.73
2024 August 49.30 27.63 70.97
2024 September 49.39 27.92 70.87
2024 October 48.81 26.36 71.27
2024 November 49.08 26.97 71.20
2024 December 48.97 26.43 71.52
2025 January 48.73 26.35 71.11
2025 February 48.62 26.08 71.16
2025 March 48.12 25.40 70.85

Source: LinkedIN, own calculations.

Authors

Professor Enzo Weber

Further Information

Grafik aktuell: IAB-LinkedIn-Branchenwechsel-Radar: Wechseldynamik auf dem Tiefpunkt

Date of publication

2025/5/30

Downloads

IAB Linkend Reallocation Radar(JPG)

Rights of use

The IAB LinkedIn Reallocation Radar is published under the following Creative Commons license: Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Publication medium

The IAB-LinkedIn Reallocation Radar: “Great Resignation” is not a trend

Weber, Enzo; Erer, Murat (2023): The IAB-LinkedIn Reallocation Radar: “Great Resignation” is not a trend, In: IAB-Forum 14th of August 2023, https://www.iab-forum.de/en/the-iab-linkedin-reallocation-radar-great-resignation-is-not-a-trend/, Retrieved: 14th of August 2023

Period analysed

January 2019 until March 2025