What were the hiring trends for global development in 2019?

Last year, an average of 6,500 jobs were posted on Devex’s job board each month. This data indicates some of the key hiring trends for 2019 — including where there was the biggest demand for development professionals, what types of organizations were hiring, and what skill sets were needed the most. The data could also indicate where the opportunities will lie for development professionals in the year ahead. In terms of experience level, the largest share of opportunities was for midlevel roles, but job postings spanned the full range — from internships to senior positions. Employers were often looking to fill short-term contract assignments, which accounted for 42% of the jobs posted. Full-time staff positions made up 38% of the opportunities, while 11% were long-term consulting assignments. Just 1% of the jobs posted were for field assignments, and there were even fewer opportunities for those looking to work part-time. Volunteering opportunities also made up 1% of the posts, and the majority of these were to be located in Europe. Generally, employers were seeking to fill current vacancies; just 5% of jobs were part of a proposal bid or talent pool. Funding agencies did the most hiring and were responsible for 30% of the jobs posted. Many of the top employers last year were United Nations agencies. Implementing NGOs posted 17% of the jobs and advocacy NGOs accounted for 13%. Where were the jobs? The U.S. was the top location for opportunities, with 17% of all jobs. It was also home to significantly more executive-level roles than any other country. Most opportunities were for full-time staff positions, while 25% were for short-term contract assignments. The U.K. hosted the second-highest share of opportunities with 5% of jobs, followed by Switzerland with 3%. These three countries host the headquarters of United Nations agencies or major funding agencies, which explains their dominance in hiring opportunities. In the U.K, more than 60% of the jobs were full-time staff positions, while just 8% were short-term contract assignments. In Switzerland, however, more than half the jobs were for short-term contract assignments, while full-time positions made up just 30% of the jobs. Kenya and the Philippines each accounted for 2% of the jobs posted. The U.N. headquarters for Africa is in Nairobi while the Asian Development Bank has its head office in Manila. The other top locations for jobs were India, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Nigeria. Some opportunities were also advertised as remote positions, which can be undertaken anywhere. As a region, Asia accounted for the greatest share of jobs overall, at 28%. Of these opportunities, almost half were for short-term contract assignments and 30% were full-time staff positions. The opportunities were fairly evenly distributed between Southeast Asia, Southern Asia, and Western Asia. In Africa, which was home to 26% of the jobs, most opportunities were in Eastern Africa and Western Africa. Again, almost half of the jobs were for short-term contract work. What were the most common job titles for work opportunities? Among the jobs posted, there were more than 5,140 opportunities in programmatic work, which fell under a range of job titles, and more than 3,650 jobs related to finance. More than 2,680 jobs were related to health, and around 1,580 jobs were related to education and gender. “Administrative assistant” was the most common job title, followed by “project manager” and “human rights officer.” Check out Devex’s jobs board for current opportunities and keep an eye out for more to come on the top development employers of 2019.