(with Larissa Fuchs, Matthias Heinz, and Max Thon)
Human capital is a key strategic resource of companies, particularly within the tech sector. In this dynamic industry, where employee costs and productivity are the main determinant of gross profits, personnel not only shape financial outcomes but also serve as a main driver for innovation (Coff 1997, Del Carpio and Guadalupe 2022, Bapna et al. 2013).
However, many firms in the tech industry fear a lack of employees and their industry associations describe labor shortage as one of their biggest challenges (OECD 2023, Marjenko et al. 2021). One major reason for the challenge is arguably that most workers in tech firms have a STEM background, and the supply of STEM graduates is limited in the labor market (Carnevale et al. 2011, Bianchi and Giorcelli 2020), in particular among women (Del Carpio and Guadalupe 2022). In such a tight and competitive labor market, recruiting processes and strategies are crucial for firms to attract professionals.
One of the most important ways for professionals to find out about vacancies in firms are job ads. In job ads, firms inform professionals about specific vacancies; moreover, they send signals about general characteristics of jobs and the work environment in the firm. Knowledge about firms’ job characteristics is important for job candidates, as professionals sort into industries and firms based on their preferences for job characteristics (Mas and Pallais 2020, 2017, Gill et al. 2023). However, preferences for various job characteristics vary substantially between people, in particular between women and men (Wiswall and Zafar 2018).