Indeed’s job postings drop 50% and other news of the job board industry

Indeed’s job postings drop 50% – really. See below for details. Indeed had plenty of company. However, the news isn’t all bad – see LinkedIn – and of course there are introductions of AI products and new pricing models. Let’s take a look at the news:

• Randstad revenue down: Randstad revenue fell 5% year over year on an organic basis in the 2nd quarter to €6.47 billion (US$7.04 billion). North America recorded the largest decline in perm placement fees, down 36% in the second quarter on an organic basis. Monster revenue on its own was down 14% year over year. Ouch.
• DHI revenue up, bookings down: DHI Group’s Q2 results show revenue was $38.5 million, up 4% year over year, while total bookings were $32.3 million, down 9% year over year. Adjusted EBITDA was $8.7 million, up 12% year over year, and Adjusted EBITDA Margin was 23%, up from 21% in the year-ago quarter. Hmm.
• ZipRecruiter revenue down: ZipRecruiter reported revenue fell 29.0% year over year in the second quarter to $170.4 million but remained in line with the midpoint of guidance provided in May. Gross margin was 91%. Both small to midsize businesses and enterprise employers are posting fewer jobs while also spending less to advertise those jobs, according to ZipRecruiter. Again, ouch.
• DIP Corp. posts sales growth: Japan-based recruitment group DIP Corp. posted around 14% and 6% year-on-year (y-o-y) growth in sales and operating income during the first quarter to May. With declining sales and promotion expenses, operating income rose to Y3.3 billion ($24.1 million) from Y3.2 billion.  Established in 1997, DIP Corp. had 2,925 full-time employees as of April 1, 2023.  The company operates recruitment marketplaces Baitoru (for part-timers), BaitoruNext (for those looking for regular and contract positions), Hatarako (for temporary jobs) and BaitoruPro (for healthcare roles). Interesting.
• Talroo releases Smart Job Titles: Talroo has released Enterprise AI-Powered Smart Job Titles, which is meant to help staffing agencies attract more qualified candidates. The product uses AI to optimize the titles in job postings based on prevalent job searches and conversions for similar roles. The solution will help recruiters implement A/B job title tests, so that companies have more control and flexibility when attracting candidates to their open positions. Intriguing.
• LinkedIn revenue rises: Revenue rose 7% year over year in constant currency at LinkedIn in its fiscal fourth quarter ended June 30; the increase was 5% on a reported basis, according to Microsoft Corp.’s earnings release. Revenue surpassed $15 billion during the quarter at LinkedIn, which ranks as the world’s second-largest job advertising firm. Fourth-quarter revenue in LinkedIn’s Talent Solutions segment — which includes tools to find job candidates — surpassed $7 billion in the fourth quarter. Good news. In other LI news, the company is working on an AI coach for job seekers.
• Recruit revenue falls and Indeed’s job postings drop: Recruit Holdings Co. Ltd., one of the world’s largest staffing firms and owner of job board Indeed, reported revenue fell 2.1% in constant currency in its fiscal first quarter ended June 30. Revenue declined at Indeed, which saw paid job ads fall by 50%. Recruit also reported a decline in staffing revenue from Europe, the US and Australia, though staffing revenue rose in Japan. Recruit also saw revenue increase in its “matching and solutions” business, which includes nonstaffing publishing operations.  Yow.
• Gupy cuts staff: Gupy, a leading Brazil-based ATS recruitment specialist, is laying off 8.5% of its workforce, the first time the HR tech company has downsized since it was founded in 2015. In total, 58 people were laid off. Gupy has been active and ascendent for the last three years, revamping its brand and products, making acquisitions and expanding its workforce by 135%. Interesting.
• inploi raises funding: inploi, a recruitment marketing platform, raised a £1.35m round to develop its growth team and accelerate the go-to-market strategy for their SaaS offering ahead of a planned expansion into the US. inploi transitioned from a marketplace into an enterprise SaaS-model coming out of the pandemic. The company – which has been described as building Shopify for hiring – is seeking to become the dominant platform powering the front-end hiring journey. Shopify, eh? Hmm.
• BDJobs introduces post-now, pay-later model: Bangladesh-based recruitment marketplace BDJobs.com has introduced performance-based pricing for hirers. The company calls it post-now-pay-later model, which means employers or recruiters can now post job ad without an upfront payment. They need to pay for the job posting only when they find a matching applicant. Sound familiar?
• Upwork revenue is up: Upwork’s Q2 revenue rose 7.5% year over year to $168.6 million, and gross margin improved. However, gross services volume edged downward. Analysts estimated revenue of $162.6 million. Overall, the number of active clients on Upwork’s platform rose 2% year over year to 822,000 in the second quarter. Decent.
• Fiverr revenue also up: Israel-based Fiverr reported revenue for the second quarter of 2023 ended June 30 of $89.4 million, an increase of 5.1% over the previous year. Adjusted EBITDA in the quarter was $15.3 million, compared to $4.6 million in the year-ago quarter. Adjusted EBITDA margin was 17.1%, compared to 5.4% a year ago. The group said it accelerated its upmarket strategy with the recent launch of Fiverr Business Solutions, a suite of product offerings which enables larger companies to access and work with freelancers across multiple use cases and engagement scenarios. Smart moves.

So, not all bad news but definitely what those economist-types call a ‘refocusing‘. Many of us have been through this before (sadly!), but trust me – better days will come again. Promise!

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