Tech and Media Job Competition Rises 40% as Applicants per Job Filled Increase

Getting a job in technology and media has become noticeably more crowded. According to Workday's October 2026 Global Workforce Report, the number of applicants for each job that gets filled rose 40 percent year over year in the sector. 

Financial services saw a 27 percent rise, and across all industries the median climbed to 69 applicants per filled job, up from 58 a year earlier.

Workday points to a possible cause: AI is making it easier to apply to more jobs at once. 84 percent of job seekers said they used AI during their search. But the extra volume has not made hiring faster. The time it takes to fill a role held steady at about 60 days.

So what does a rising applicant count really tell us, and what should job seekers and employers do about it? The report offers some clear answers.

Technology and media saw the steepest rise in applicants per filled job, at 40 percent year over year.

How Much Has Competition Risen?

Technology and media lead the increase.

More than half of applicants in both technology and media (57 percent) and financial services (53 percent) said AI increased how many roles they applied to.

Why Are More People Applying?

AI makes applying easier, and routes inside companies are narrowing.

AI is one reason. The other is that moving up inside a company is getting harder. Internal moves fell at 57 per cent of employers year over year, and promotion rates worldwide stayed essentially flat. Nearly 4 in 10 employees said their company went through a reorganisation or restructuring in the past year.

Employees who tried to move internally most often pointed to three obstacles: hiring being paused for the role, managers who did not support the move, and selection processes that did not feel fair. About half did not try at all, and 27 percent of them said they saw no attractive opportunity inside their company.

Internal moves fell at 57 percent of employers, which is pushing more people to look outside.

Is More Competition Speeding Up Hiring?

Volume is up. Speed is not.

The time to fill a role held steady at about 60 days, because more applications do not necessarily mean more qualified candidates. Employers told Workday that roles mostly stay open for two reasons: candidates lack the right skills, or pay, location, or flexibility do not line up with what people want.

Phil Willburn, vice president at Workday, says the hiring question has changed:

“It's whether they can learn fast enough to solve the next problem.” — Phil Willburn, Workday

The time to fill a role is held at about 60 days despite the surge in applicants.

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What Skills Stand Out in a Crowded Field?

Employers are looking for people who can build with AI, not just prompt it.

Workday analysed skills data on job requisitions across more than 550 employers:

• Demand for basic AI skills, like simple prompting, peaked in January 2026 and then fell 25 percent.

• Demand for hands-on skills, like building AI tools, automating workflows and AI engineering, rose 51 percent between September 2025 and July 2026.

Employers also asked for less of the skills that help people through change. Mentions of management and leadership skills fell 7 percent, and training skills fell 13 percent.

Demand for hands-on AI skills rose 51 percent between September 2025 and July 2026, while basic AI skills lost 25 percent from their peak.

Tip: In a crowded field, show one hands-on AI skill you can demonstrate, such as a tool you built or a workflow you automated, instead of listing prompting alone.

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What Does This Mean for Employers?

Staying is not the same as buying in.

Employers are not expecting AI to shrink their workforce. 40 percent of business leaders expect AI to help them get more out of existing employees, while 28 percent expect it to reduce headcount.

But workers say they are not getting the help to keep up: 79 percent know what skills they need, and only 66 percent say their employer helps them build them.

Employees are staying. Voluntary turnover sits at roughly 16 percent a year, and about 70 percent are still with the same company two years later. Workday cautions that this is a sign of caution, not commitment.

“There's a lot of quiet unease in the workplace right now,” Willburn said.

In every industry analysed, employees who plan to stay are less likely to recommend their employer, with a gap that reaches 11 points in the public sector.

Tip: If internal moves are stalling, start with the three reasons employees gave: paused hiring, unsupportive managers and selection processes that feel unfair.

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Key Takeaways

• Applicants per filled job rose 40 percent in technology and media and 27 percent in financial services.

• The median applicants per filled job across industries rose to 69 from 58.

• 84 percent of job seekers used AI, and more than half of applicants in both sectors said it increased the roles they applied to.

• Time to fill held at about 60 days, because more applications do not mean more qualified candidates.

• Demand for hands-on AI skills rose 51 percent, while basic AI skills fell 25 percent from their January 2026 peak.

• Internal moves fell at 57 percent of employers, and employees who stay are less likely to recommend their employer.

So, Is Competition for Tech Jobs Really Rising, and Is It Working?

Competition is rising, with a 40 percent jump in applicants per filled job in technology and media. But it is not producing faster hiring. Roles still take about 60 days to fill, and employers say they stay open mostly because candidates lack the right skills.

For job seekers, the edge is in building and learning, not in applying more widely. For employers, the pressure runs both ways: they face a flood of applications, while their own employees report too few ways to grow.

More applicants are chasing each role, but employers say the shortfall is skills, not volume.