INTHEBLACK February / March 2026 - Magazine - Page 36
F E AT U R E
“Graduates who can demonstrate an ability to apply the
increasingly important interdisciplinary skills of problem
solving, critical thing, resilience and creativity will be
in demand.”
DR ASH JONES, CPA AUSTRALIA
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36 INTHEBLACK February/March 2026
According to its research, LinkedIn remains
the top platform for students to engage with
employers. “[Engagement between students
and employers on] Facebook has been
declining for some time, and while Instagram
is gaining traction, both are still relatively
small in terms of student engagement for
employer interactions. Additionally, targeted
events on campus, such as specific career
fairs, student clubs and societies, as well as
collaborations with particular disciplines and
faculties, play a crucial role in connecting
students with employers,” Wilson says.
Looking more broadly at the Asia-Pacific
region, the rise of generative AI is influencing
the availability of entry-level roles and workforce
planning, says Alvin Lim, managing director
and principal consultant of Singapore-based
talent analytics and employer brand consulting
firm Good People Consulting.
“Organisations are evaluating whether
existing positions can be fulfilled by artificial
intelligence, including agentic AI, now and
in future workforce strategies,” Lim says.
“Employers I have spoken with indicate
reductions in their graduate program
investments, with some deprioritising such
initiatives or, in certain cases, discontinuing
them altogether.”
With the COVID-19 pandemic now years
in the past, many APAC companies require
staff to return to the office full-time or are
implementing stricter hybrid work policies.
“Some organisations are reportedly
using aggressive return-to-office policies
to intentionally increase attrition rates as
they address profitability concerns and
a subdued job market,” says Lim.
“Training budgets have been cut and
employers are managing training internally,
sometimes using AI tools such as ChatGPT
for program design to save costs.”
EXPAND THE TALENT POOL
While many employers continue to source
graduates through career fairs and other
university activities, some are starting to
College students at a job fair in Jiangsu province,
China, November 2024
attract graduates for their skills, regardless
of their tertiary qualification.
“The workplace is rapidly changing.
Graduates vying for their first role will
experience more career changes than any other
previous graduate cohort,” says Dr Jones.
“As a result, graduates who can
demonstrate an ability to apply the
increasingly important interdisciplinary skills
of problem solving, critical thing, resilience
and creativity will be in demand.”
Employers who are able to establish a sense
of belonging in the workplace, whether that
be through flexible working arrangements or
wellbeing programs, as well as clearly defined
career-growth opportunities, will be the ones
that attract and retain top performers now
and into the future. ■
