Top Trends And Advances In The Financial Services Industry

In times of economic uncertainty, financial advisors remain in high demand thanks to their ability to assist others with their financial needs. But thanks to the recession, new competitors, evolving customer needs, and technological innovation, even this titan of an industry faces big questions in the back half of 2023 and beyond.

“The competition to meet the growing demand for financial support will continue to be fierce, with banks, wealth management firms and fintech companies all looking to fill the gap.” –Mike Sha, CEO of SigFig

Resiliency and adaptability, as always, will be the key to keeping the financial services industry thriving in the future. By looking into expert predictions, combing through the statistics, and researching emerging industry and technological trends, we compiled our ultimate guide for the financial industry.

*Courtesy of the experts at Forbes, DocuSign, FinTech Futures, Finance Magnates, Fast Company, FICO Blog, Ring Central, IBM, Wells Fargo, Microsoft, and more!

Improving the consumer experience

For those outside the industry, working with hard-earned money is an intimidating and often alien process. Finding the right financial advisors and banking services are crucial, and the best organizations will prioritize the consumer experience in order to attract and maintain clientele.

Digital experience

BAI research found that new customer acquisition is the number one priority for banks in 2023, which makes sense. Attracting younger clients is the best way to accomplish this, which means embracing online and digital banking. BAI found that 70% of millennials and Gen Zers have already opened accounts online. Gen Zers, in particular, will be a significant focus as more enter the workforce and require these services. Paul Hindle of Fintech Futures notes that the average Gen Zer gets their first smartphone by age 12 and a large percentage spend up to five hours a day on social media platforms.

Embracing digital trends is the key to keeping this demographic happy. 44% of BAI’s respondents found gaps in onboarding processes and seek a more streamlined experience. Meanwhile, more than 70% of respondents said they would switch to a financial service provider with better digital experiences.

“To address these needs, organizations must prioritize offering mobile-friendly solutions and digital self-service options that provide customers with anytime, anywhere access to their financial lives.” –Manas Baba, financial services industry expert

Interpersonal needs

A digital Renaissance isn’t the only thing customers are seeking. Customers are seeking a more personalized experience, ease of use, and a sense of trust in their financial service providers.

Personalized banking is expected to be the norm, which the experts at Finance Magnates believe means embracing AI-based algorithms to track individual preferences and behaviors. Forbes’ Mike Sha notes that beyond standard investment advice, a financial advisor can use personalized information to advise a family on specific goals they need like how to pay for a family reunion or consolidate credit card debt.

Fast Company notes that in today’s world, many consumers are using different financial institutions for different purposes rather than putting their eggs in one proverbial basket and that their financial lives are connected in ways beyond a traditional nuclear family. Financial service providers can embrace this mindset by making alliances with one another to cover services they can’t. The easier an institution, or group of institutions, can make a consumer’s life, the more likely they’ll stick with that institution.

Finally, trust is a significant concern for consumers. While this has always been true, it’s even more critical in a digital world where you aren’t making face-to-face interactions with your service providers. Trust is essential in any relationship, and it takes a leap of faith to trust someone with money. A dedication to trust can be built by prioritizing security, privacy, and ethical practices according to Darryl Knopp.

Embracing emerging technology

In order to meet these evolving consumer needs, financial service providers must stay on top of trending technological advances. Three emerging technologies are particularly relevant to the industry: artificial intelligence, cloud-based systems, and digital banking.

Artificial intelligence

AI is becoming more widely available and used in more and more industries, and financial services are no exception. In terms of gathering and presenting data and in working directly with consumers, AI is becoming a major part of how financial institutions do business.

Chatbots, AI programs used to gather necessary information from consumers and provide information back, are increasingly prevalent in the industry as a way to improve customer service and innovate tasks according to Forbes’ Murtaza Hussain. Studies have shown that chatbots can save banks up to 30% of their customer service costs alone. Programs like ChatGPT, while imperfect, are great for providing human-like answers and being easy to interact with.

AI will continue evolving and offering even more crucial benefits for financial services. Ring Central’s Matt Lehman says that AI can direct customers to the right services, increase personalization to increase a sense of empathy and find the right solutions, and more quickly share information between industry employees. Studies predict AI capabilities will lead to a 35% boost in productivity by 2035.

“In contrast, AI is being used to provide personalized recommendations and insights to customers based on their transaction history. According to a PwC report, AI adoption in the banking industry is expected to rise from 16% to 77% by 2022.” –Finance Magnates

Cloud-based systems

Top-performing financial organizations have been embracing a switch to cloud-based platforms for years, and smaller organizations are starting to catch up. IBM found a plethora of good reasons for switching to the cloud, including increased speed, decreasing costs and operational expenses, and making life easier for remote employees. Thanks to the nation embracing more remote and hybrid models, the last point is particularly noteworthy.

DashDev’s Igor Tomych reiterates that the cloud is just the beginning of advanced innovation for industry needs. Breaking free from legacy systems means becoming more consumer-focused and data-driven while leading to better communication and resource sharing.

Digital banking and increased consumer support

As mentioned above, millennial and Gen Z users are heavily focused on ease of use and a well-designed digital interface. Innovations focused on clean, easy-to-access tools and an optimized orientation process will lead to happier consumers.

This starts with mobile-friendly tools and well-made self-service options, according to Manas Baba. Younger consumers are more inclined to do things on their own at their own time. The more an institution’s platform allows a user to operate autonomously, the happier this emerging consumer base will be.

Another innovation discussed by Ather Williams of Wells Fargo is the idea of creating a digital ID, or a way to prove there is a real person on the receiving end of any financial transaction. Third-party services that don’t rely on credit cards like Venmo and Cash App are popular, but their ease of access can lead to fraud. Williams suggests institutions will find their own way to create these IDs but the long-term solution would involve a standardized approach.

“We’re going to have to work to solve this problem of how to know that both the buyer and seller are who they say they are.” –Ather Williams, Wells Fargo

Increased focus on risk management

As technology in this industry advances, you can be sure that those who would disrupt the industry are making technological advancements of their own. According to Microsoft’s Bill Borden, cybercrime is expected to cost the world $10.5 trillion by 2025, tripling the annual amount of a decade ago. Financial institutions have a challenge ahead of them to create more robust risk management techniques while complying with government regulations.

Financial crimes and money laundering are serious concerns and have only become more prevalent thanks to new technology and a shift to remote work. Receeve found that 42% of businesses said that digital fraud prevents innovation and stops expansion into new channels. Because of the shift in remote work, data is constantly moving through different services and software, making it an easier target for ne’er-do-wells.

Forbes’ Sudhir Pai writes that while reporting standards and guidelines have risen, they aren’t always consistent. Because financial data is so complex, firms need to find constantly evolving and innovative software to combat the constantly evolving and innovative software of their enemies. Pai believes digitization, decentralization, and decarbonization will be the top three priorities.

“There will be a rise in the number and growth of regtech firms that offer technological solutions suitable for financial firms to achieve regulatory compliance.” –Sudhir Pai, Forbes

Finance Magnates believes that biometric authentication, artificial intelligence, and machine learning will dominate cybersecurity efforts. These efforts should assist with the previous points as well. Better technology creates a better user experience while building a sense of trust thanks to these efforts will bring in more satisfied consumers.

Matt Lehman says that regulation efforts add an additional challenge. There is more pressure on banks and other institutions to achieve compliance and successfully manage risks, and those that can’t are subject to hefty fines. Finding the right tools to maintain compliance and increase cybersecurity efforts will be a difficult balance.

Cost-cutting versus optimization

There isn’t a single industry out there that isn’t trying to do more with less—it’s a constant truth in business. And financial organizations are no exception. The above points all point to a need to innovate and find better ways to fulfill customer needs, and that isn’t cheap. Finding a way to cut costs across the board while optimizing available resources is the tricky balance financial service providers need to find.

Matt Lehman cites that the majority of financial institutions don’t expect an economic recovery until sometime in 2024, though some are optimistic we could see a turnaround in late 2023. Many institutions are embracing a more conservative approach in the face of this uncertainty and are risk-averse. This leads to the industry trying to do more with less.

via Ring Central

Bill Borden says that a core component of doing more with less is letting technology handle processes by automating tasks and digitizing data. Being able to optimize day-to-day actions better will free up money and time that can be spent on innovating in other areas. It isn’t cheap to invest in new technology, and not every attempt at innovation will work. Being able to free up extra resources by automating more mundane tasks creates more breathing room.

Final thoughts

More than ever before, the last few years have shown us just how uncertain the world can be. For the financial services industry, economic uncertainty, changing cultural needs, and a surge in technological advances are the biggest challenges of an uncertain future.

“With the rapid rate of change in the financial services space, it can sometimes be difficult for banks and fintechs to keep their finger on the pulse amid a sea of technological advancements and ever-changing consumer demands.” –Paul Hindle, Fintech Futures

Organizations dedicated to crafting a better experience for their customers, finding innovative ways to use technology to create that experience while minimizing risk, and optimizing resources to cut existing costs to fund this technology will be best able to navigate this uncertain future.

Learning About NexGoal

Want NexGoal to help you access the often-closed community of passive candidates and start sourcing top-performing employees for your organization? Filling positions in Accounting, Tax Management, Assurance, Auditing, Analysts, and more, we would love the chance to showcase how our industry expertise and candidate database can benefit you. Contact our CEO, Kevin Dahl, at kevindahl@nexgoal.com to start putting this plan into action.

*Reference this article, and we will also include free paid promotions for your company on online job boards such as LinkedIn and Indeed.

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Emerging Trends and Outlooks For Construction & Manufacturing

The commercial construction industry is an odd spot entering 2023. With the country staring down a potential recession, there may be fewer projects available thanks to high-interest costs and perceived reduced spending. But Forbes’ Bill Conerly notes that industry employment is on the rise for both actual building work and specialty trades. The manufacturing industry is in a similar spot—while momentum carried the industry through 2022, inflation and economic certainty paint a cloudy future for 2023, according to Deloitte.

“This year my motto is: Don’t just get ready, stay ready. If you haven’t started planning for next year, now’s the time — then you’ll be ready to tackle 12 months of come-what-may.” Dave Evans, Forbes

Even facing economic uncertainty, the simple truth is that things need to be built and skilled labor will always have a place. By researching market trends, assessing expert opinions and predictions, and looking into the statistics, we’ve created the ultimate guide to the commercial construction and manufacturing industries for 2023.

*Courtesy of the experts at Big Top Manufacturing, Revolutionized, Building Design + Construction, Forbes, Exploding Topics, Deloitte, Armacell, and more!

Labor shortages

It’s no surprise that the COVID-19 pandemic had a massive effect on available jobs and created a multitude of layoffs in the construction and manufacturing industries as it did many others. While the country started opening back up and alleviated some of the shortage, the pandemic is far from the only reason there is a labor shortage in these industries.

Nick Grandy, senior analyst at RSM US, believes there are 25% more unfilled construction positions than hires. Grandy compares the shortage to that of the early pandemic toilet paper shortage—a lack of inventory creating a market filled with desperate buyers.

Revolutionized’s Emily Newton writes that many long-standing construction professionals have either left the workforce, are near retirement, or have faced layoffs. In this industry, it can take a long time for information and skills to transfer from veterans to new hires, leading to a dearth of particularly qualified professionals. In addition, it’s more difficult to get those entering the workforce to consider construction in the first place.

Luckily, there are solutions on the horizon. CBS News’ Nancy Chen reports that there has been a 50% increase in the number of women in construction thanks to targeted marketing campaigns. Deloitte reports that despite the high number of voluntary exits in the manufacturing industry, organizations industry-wide are researching retainment strategies.

Reducing Costs

With inflation at work and a shortage of laborers, it’s crucial for companies to find a way to reduce costs around the board. Construction management firm Skanska found that construction spending will increase in many vital sectors, including manufacturing, transportation, highways, multifamily housing, lodging, and communications. In order to help meet the demand, industry leaders are looking for creative ways to reduce costs.

via Building Design + Construction

Material costs

Skanska’s Vice President of National Strategic Supply Chain, Tom Park, noted that a reduction in housing has eased demand for raw materials, making it both cheaper and less time-consuming to acquire many necessary building components, including commercial roofing materials, architectural interiors, lumber, and plumping.

Emily Newton found that while the labor shortage and sourcing difficulties led to a rise in the cost of construction materials in recent years, the burden should be eased in 2023, corroborating Skanska’s findings.

Outsourcing

In order to further reduce costs, companies will start outsourcing manufacturing more than ever before. The 2022 State of Manufacturing report found that 48% of companies increased their manufacturing outsourcing in 2022, and that number is expected to rise in 2023. Forbes’ Dave Evans says that while finding the right outsourcing partners are key, a good diversification of geographic partners will further slow any potential disruptions.

Construction sites

Big Top Manufacturing suggests that rethinking the literal foundations of construction and manufacturing sites is a key way to reduce costs without sacrificing quality. Switching to fabric buildings is not only more cost-effective but they take much less time to build, meaning these sites can start producing, and thus become profitable, much more quickly. These sites are surprisingly more resilient to the elements, don’t require as many expensive repairs, and are more environmentally friendly than traditionally-constructed buildings.

Emerging Technologies

A rise in emerging technologies means rapid changes are constantly occurring worldwide, and the construction and manufacturing industries are no strangers to technological growth. Advancing technology should lead to smoother training and more efficient processing industry-wide.

VR training

As mentioned above, many qualified professionals are leaving the industry, and the labor shortage makes it difficult to replace that productivity. An effective way to speed up training and reduce the skill gap is the use of virtual reality training programs.

Big Top Shelters notes this technology can allow new hires to get hands-on experience with concepts that are difficult or expensive to organically practice otherwise. VR also allows workers to see structures before they are built in real space, speeding up the process by allowing them to eliminate blueprint errors and test designs before work begins. This ultimately saves the company a great deal of money while also creating a safer environment.

Robotics and IoT

Both robotics and the Internet of Things (IoT) are becoming commonplace in many industries thanks to their ability to save time and money.

Nidhi Aggarwal mentions the importance of IoT in allowing companies to remain productive with remote work sites, which became a necessity during the pandemic but persistent thanks to how much time and money they save. The more work that can be done offsite, the more money the client and the company can save while also keeping workers safe.

Robotics meanwhile serve to assist workers by decreasing the time tasks take while keeping laborers safe. Robotics don’t exist to replace human workers but enhance what they can do. Emily Newton notes how robotics can help with manual tasks like bricklaying to allow humans to work faster and without as much strain on their bodies. A common trend is the rise of exoskeletons that can reduce the fatigue common in many physical labor tasks.

Supply chain innovations

Supply chain disruptions have been a frequent topic when discussing these industries, and that isn’t going to change anytime soon. Industry innovations to stay ahead of disruptions while further lower costs will be essential.

At the surface level, finding ways to automate processes and lowering the amount of physical labor will save time that could be better focused elsewhere. Exploding Topics’ Josh Howarth says that reshoring, or looking to other countries for material processing plants, is estimated to be around $443 billion in the US. With this in mind, those manufacturers best able to incorporate new technologies that can reduce delays will be highly-profitable and sought out.

Dave Evans reports that the companies that will best weather potential disruptions are those that are agile and strategic and that taking time now to reevaluate processes and create redundancies will save time when delays inevitably occur.

Smart factories

All of the above will coalesce into “smart factories,” a concept that has surged in recent years according to Josh Howarth. Gartner defines these as “a concept used to describe the application of different combinations of modern technologies to create a hyperflexible, self-adapting manufacturing capability.” The ability to automate tasks, minimize errors, and promote worker safety will allow productivity to surge. Howarth reports that automotive manufacturers expect to have one-quarter of their plants as smart factories and that those factories could create $160 billion in value. Other industries will certainly follow suit.

“Industry 4.0 continues the push towards automation, employing technologies such as IIoT (industrial internet of things), big data, machine learning, artificial intelligence (AI), and advanced analytics.” –Josh Howarth

Howarth also believes there will be a rise in microfactories, or small, highly modular setups that make use of leading-edge technology like artificial intelligence, robotics, and big data, to enable hyper-autonomous manufacturing, thanks to the ascension of smart factories and the need to restructure supply chains. Microfactories can be built closer to points of trade and cut down on travel time, errors, and costs.

Environmentalism

As more companies make concentrated efforts to have less of an impact on our environment, green technology and environmental efforts will be prioritized heavily in 2023.

Key components of green building include energy efficiency, renewable energy, water efficiency, using recycled materials, reducing waste, increasing air quality, and smart growth. Emily Newton lists incorporating solar panels, recycling materials during and after projects, and using sustainable materials like bamboo as tangible methods to achieve these goals.

Via Armacell, green buildings accounted for just 8% of construction spending in 2013. In 2022, green buildings made up 47% of new construction processes, and that number is expected to skyrocket to 60% by 2025. These 60% are believed to be net-zero ready, or able to be built with zero carbon emissions.

Not only are these green buildings much better for the environment but will be profitable as well—Armacell cites that the green building market will be over $81 billion. Tax incentives are being created to further entice companies to invest in energy-efficient buildings.

The aforementioned emerging technologies should factor into making environmentally-sustainable buildings as well. By increasing digital efforts, utilizing VR training, and using robotics for environmentally-friendly construction, an organization will be able to lower its carbon footprint.

Final thoughts

The construction and manufacturing industries are in a challenging but exciting state entering 2023. Forbes’ Bill Conerly cites the growing costs and upcoming recession conflicting with the rise of employment opportunities and activity increasing as factors that make projecting the 2023 landscape difficult.

What is clear is that the pandemic forever altered the face of these industries, and companies willing to evolve and embrace new technology and rethink supply chains will be the most successful moving forward.

Learning About NexGoal

Want NexGoal to help you access the often-closed community of passive candidates and start sourcing top-performing employees for your organization? Filling positions in Sales, Quality Assurance, Quality Control, Manufacturing, R&D Design, Factory Leadership, and more, we would love the chance to showcase how our industry expertise and candidate database can benefit you. Contact our CEO, Kevin Dahl, at kevindahl@nexgoal.com to start putting this plan into action.

*Reference this article, and we will also include free paid promotions for your company on online job boards such as LinkedIn and Indeed.

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Top Trends in the Technology Sector

IT companies and employers who rely heavily on technology know better than anyone the repeat cycle of learning, unlearning, and relearning. As the most rapidly evolving industry with many changes arriving faster than your progress of the previous shift, the challenges many American corporations saw come with COVID-19 were nothing tech professionals couldn’t handle. However, the new standard of virtual-first companies that aim to stay people-centric begs to question what that may look like for the tech industry’s future.

“CEOs know they must accelerate the adoption of digital business and are seeking more direct digital routes to connect with their customers, but with an eye on future economic risks, they also want to be efficient and protect margins and cash flow.” –David Groombridge, VP Analyst, Gartner.

From the continued developments in Automation, Edge Computing, AI & ML, Cybersecurity, Robotics, etc., to the rapidly increasing hiring needs and remote work shift, we have compiled the ultimate guide to the latest IT industry trends and statistics for 2022.

*Research & statistics are courtesy of the industry professionals at Forbes, Simplilearn, Gartner, LinchPin SEO & more!

These Technology Trends Continue To Surge

1. Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML)

While AI & ML are far from new, many industries are looking for new ways to grow their resources further to implement these revolutionary technologies. Highly regarded for its excellence in navigation apps and image and speech recognition, AI has made groundbreaking steps in providing critical insights into predicting demand and monitoring resource functions. Machine Learning generates enormous demand for skilled employees across all industries as a subset of Artificial Intelligence. Experts predict the AI market will grow to $190 billion by 2025 (MarketsandMarkets).

Breakdown: Artificial Intelligence (AI) is software designed to simulate human thinking. Machine Learning (ML) is a subset of AI that starts without knowledge and becomes intelligent (Red Marker). Automation is a type of software that follows pre-programmed rules to carry out repetitive tasks without human intervention.

  • In addition to the rise of machine vision technology, low-code and no-code development platforms continue to emerge, allowing more users not to be limited by their coding capabilities.
  • AI engineering’s direct focus on developing ML algorithms to learn, analyze, and predict will help streamline AI delivery.
  • Autonomic systems which learn in real-time from their environments and construct new behavior will advance the capabilities in supporting regulations and situations yet to be seen.
  • Generate AI will compile data to create new, unseen content, helping accelerate research and Development cycles in medicine.

As an AI-centric version of DevOps, AIOps is intently focused on leveraging large data from various IT tools and devices to automatically read and react while still providing historical analytics (BMC).

Along with Automation, AI & ML are expected to generate a 9% increase in new US jobs by 2025 (Forrester), ranging in programming, testing, development, and more. The industry also boasts one of today’s highest salary ranges. Enabling companies of all styles to improve efficiency and reach their goals quickly, continued advancements in automation are well on the horizon.

Hyperautomation

Hyperautomation is a business-driven approach to rapidly identifying and automating as many processes as possible. It is designed to help enhance remote operation and dependability and streamline business procedures.

Autonomic Systems

Autonomic Systems are self-managed physical or software systems that learn from their environments and dynamically modify their algorithms in real-time to optimize their behavior in complex ecosystems. These systems create an agile set of technology capabilities that can support new requirements and situations, maximize performance and defend against attacks (Gartner).

There are many promising developments of AI in healthcare, such as PathAI, dedicated to providing hospitals and patients with accurate diagnoses through deep learning algorithms. ML is also used to speed up drug development by predicting symptoms and infections of patients. Our recent industry guide covering Medical Devices touched on the connection between various technology trends and the healthcare industry.

2. Cloud Computing | Edge Computing

As more companies migrate to cloud solutions, edge computing has emerged as a high-rising technology trend. A cloud is an IT environment that abstracts, pools, and shares IT resources across a network. An edge typically involves large volumes of data being handled at the edge of the network to optimize processing further. While edge computing is used to process time-sensitive data, cloud computing is utilized to process data that is not time-driven. Thus, edge computing accommodates for the shortcomings of cloud computing, IoT being one of the greatest beneficiaries.

• Clouds are places where data can be stored, or applications can run. They are software-defined environments created by data centers or server farms.
• Edges are also places where data is collected. They are physical environments made up of hardware outside a data center.
• Cloud computing is the act of running workloads in a cloud.
• Edge computing is the act of running workloads on edge devices.
(RedHat)

More industries are designating a place for digital information and resources and prioritizing safety in the process. Driven by major companies AWS, Google Cloud Platform, and Microsoft Azure, cloud computing allows companies to improve work efficiencies in the digital space. According to Forrester Research, the global cloud computing market will reach $482 billion this year. By the end of the year, the global edge computing market is expected to reach $6.72 billion, establishing a wide variety of jobs.

“Though many companies are adopting edge computing and are predicting the end of cloud computing, Bernard Golden points out that this is not substantiated because there is currently no analytical framework to prove it. Edge computing is not the only solution for the challenges faced by IT vendors and organizations and does not handle all applications across every environment, thus, cloud computing will still remain a crucial part of an organization’s IT infrastructure.” – Simplilearn

Another rising form of computing technology, Quantum Computing, is identified as a top emerging trend thanks to its ability to analyze and act on data quickly. QC has made tremendous strides in healthcare through the development of vaccines and in finance and banking through trading and fraud protection. The capabilities that lie within Quantum Computing are marked by experts to be the greatest in computing innovation. By 2029, the quantum computing market is projected to surpass $2.4 billion (Simplilearn).

3. Cybersecurity

While cybersecurity itself is a more routine practice, new threats are constantly arriving, thus demanding that security technologies keep evolving. First seeing a spike in cyber-attacks as a product of the remote work shift, more industries and organizations gathered a better understanding of the threats that accompany their technological developments. From hackers illegally accessing data and finding new ways to invade networks, the importance of investing in cybersecurity is immensely evident. Gartner predicts by 2025, “60% of organizations will use cybersecurity risk as a primary determinant in conducting third-party transactions and business engagements.” Experts forecast the global security market will grow from $217 billion today to $345 billion by 2026.

Cybersecurity has become immensely relied upon to quickly “verify identity content and policy adherence across cloud and noncloudy environments” (Gartner). Cybersecurity mesh also plays a tremendous role in modernizing organizations’ security architecture by enabling greater scalability, flexibility, and reliable cybersecurity control. “The security mesh enables core distributed policy enforcement and provides convenient composable tools that can be plugged anywhere into the mesh” (10xDS).

Courtesy of Gartner’s IT Contributor Kasey Panetta, check out these Eight Predictions For Cybersecurity in 2022 and Beyond.

4. Robotics

Similar to Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, the operations of Robotics aim to execute tasks typically performed by humans. Robotics Process Automation (RPA) is another technology automating jobs. RPA enlists software to automate repetitive tasks performed by humans, such as interpreting applications, processing transactions, reading data, and replying to emails (Simplilearn). As is the case with AI & ML, RPA will create many more jobs than it is replacing. By 2030, Experts predict the global robotics market could climb to $260 billion by 2030 (BCG).

Whether by taking the form of a human (physical) or a robotic application (virtual), the functionality of robots made a tremendous leap in 2022. The increased use of robotics in healthcare signifies the high demand for Robotics Engineers. Physical robotics highlight advancements in medical equipment, while virtual bots typically exist in software to automate customer service and sales tasks, overlapping with AI (LearnToCodeWithMe). Chatbots have also made significant improvements in the basic functions of customer service and their ability to resolve certain queries.

Courtesy of Automate.org, check out these Seven Trends and Predictions For Robotics in 2022.

Remote Work Shift –

The remote and hybrid work model is not going anywhere anytime soon. With the high productivity many US employers are experiencing, combined with the preferences of their employees, many organizations’ back-to-office plans have fallen by the wayside. PEW Research reports that 60% of US workers say their jobs can be done from home, while GoodHire found that 85% of US workers prefer job listings with remote work options.

TRUST Goes Both Ways – Employees seek to gain as much freedom and flexibility as possible. For employers wanting to stand out to top performers and highly coveted job-seekers, there is immense pressure to give in to these desires when plausible. In addition to technology growth, companies must prepare to invest in new health benefits, communication strategies, and overall holistic wellness to boost employee performance and retention.

Remote Work is best geared toward the IT & Software industry.

While technology is constantly evolving and improving, the rise of remote work forced technology to improve in new, specific ways, accelerating the global need for technology. As a result, remote-friendly SaaS services, such as Trello and Asana, have taken center stage (Fast Company). One key example of this is the need for enhanced software and hardware connectivity. As hardware struggles to manage high longevity in technology, the decentralization of large office spaces puts added pressure on the countless individual workspaces that need stable connectivity.

Now that AI is more of a mainstream concept, many employers are seeking specific AI expertise in 2022, such as natural language processing (NLP) and automated speech recognition (ASR). Furthermore, 70% of C-level executives prefer that their non-technical employees have some automation and AI skills (LearnToCodeWithMe).

Today’s workforce continues to ask the big question: Are the latest tech advancements causing humans to lose their jobs to robots and computers? Technically, yes, but this shift has created far more opportunities in tech! Machines are not replacing humans; as ITOps teams develop new skills, new roles will materialize. While the World Economic Forum expects 85 million jobs to be replaced by machines with AI by 2025, the same report expects 97 million new jobs to be created by 2025. With the developments in Edge Computing, Software Engineers predictably be the greatest beneficiaries, followed by Cloud Reliability Engineers, Cloud Infrastructure Engineers, Cloud Architects, Security Architects, and DevOps Cloud Engineers (Simplilearn).

Across all industries, the sharp rise of remote work was the source of over 20% of cyber-attacks over the past two years. As a result, cybersecurity quickly became one of the most in-demand jobs and prioritized tech skills in 2022. Hired.com reports that the demand for Security Engineers has increased by 132%. In fact, the number of jobs available in cybersecurity is growing 3x faster than any other tech-related job.

Job-Seekers: Do you have a growing interest in getting involved in tech? The tech industry is desperate for workers in general, leading to many job opportunities opening up to job-seekers with little-to-no industry experience. There are many varying avenues you can push toward!

Statistics, Facts & Growth Projections via Learn To Code With Me:

AI & ML:

Cloud Computing | Edge Computing | Quantum Computing:

Cybersecurity:

Robotics: 

  • LinkedIn reports that with the rise of both virtual and physical bots, the robotics industry has seen a 40% annual growth.
  • It’s estimated that the US will need 12,500 robotics engineers over the next ten years.
  • In 2021, Life Sciences and Pharmaceutical Robotics orders had a 69% growth (RoboDK).
  • The global market size of robots in healthcare will be worth $3.28 billion by 2025.

Learning About NexGoal

Want NexGoal to help you access the often-closed community of passive candidates and start sourcing top-performing employees for your organization? Filling positions in Engineering, Management, Sales, Customer Support, etc. across clients within SaaS, IT Consulting, IT Operations (and more), we are confident in our ability to connect you to proven talent. Contact our CEO, Kevin Dahl, at kevindahl@nexgoal.com to start putting this plan into action.

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Assessing The Mortgage Industry: Top Trends & Statistics

Is the U.S. housing market overheating? Within the stability of low mortgage rates and high buyer contention, the housing market continues to be highly competitive. While it is a great time to be in the market for a loan, borrowers don’t quite have their’ pick of the litter’ like in times past. Home prices continue to rise, as does the volume of offers placed on each listing. 

“Demand is robust throughout the country, but homebuyers continue to be held back by the lack of homes for sale and rapidly increasing home prices.” – Joel Kan, MBA Economist.

After assessing various expert opinions, knowledge, and studies, we have constructed the ultimate guide to the latest Mortgage industry trends and statistics entering 2022. Courtesy of the industry professionals with The Mortgage Banker’s Association, Fannie Mae, Forbes, Wall Street Journal, Bankrate, The Motley Fool, TIME Magazine, & more!

Mortgage Rates Staying Low

While banks and lenders compete for consumers, the lingering of favorable rates comes much to the delight of borrowers. Mortgage rates have hovered around 3% throughout 2021, and experts predict that trend to continue. While many foresee a gradual incline, the experts in Real Estate at the likes of Bankrate and Next Advisor are still forecasting rates below 3.5% through 2022.

Why are mortgage rates remaining low? Mortgage rates are also influenced by consumer demand for home loans and the lenders’ willingness and ability to adhere to the numbers. According to the Mortgage Banker’s Association & Fannie Mae, the total volume of loan originations (purchase and refinance) in 2021 is on pace for a $250 million decline (10%) from 2020. The current year is on pace to see an 11% increase in purchase mortgage originations at $1.8 trillion, but a 14% decrease in refinance originations at 2.2 trillion. With loans able to derive from any location, banks and lenders are making their best effort to beat out the competition’s low rates and hold on to their newly hired employees. 

Inventory Causing High Buyer Competition

Realtors across the country have reported seeing multiple offers come in on nearly every listing, and they expect that trend to continue through the Spring as well. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), the U.S. housing market is short 3 million homes, and supply will likely remain tight for the next few years. As a result, we are experiencing the most significant annual growth in home value in over 30 years, including a 14.6% price increase from April 2020 to April 2021. Chief Economist with CoreLogic, Frank Nothaft, details how the low rates “have led to really eye-popping house price gains, and I expect that to continue.”

Why is the current housing supply unable to keep up with demand? In addition to the low mortgage rates that have new buyers emerging from every location, construction of new homes was also severely slowed by COVID-19 and has yet to get back on track. The NJ Lenders Corporation also reports that many homeowners who are removed from the big-city lifestyle are reluctant to sell their homes with the ease and comfortability they’ve found in working remotely. Homeowners are much more likely to explore refinancing to cut their monthly payments, focus on new home projects, and build more equity in their homes. Furthermore, these homeowners are well aware that choosing to reap the benefits of the seller-friendly market means they will become a part of the crowded homebuyer market.

via National Mortgage News             
(via National Mortgage News)                                                             (via Affinity Realty Group)

With sellers earning top-dollar for their listed properties, buyers need to be exceptionally savvy in hopes of striking a deal. More desirable homes, such as those not requiring renovations, encompassing ample living space and coveted amenities, are often swept off the market in 1-2 days. The mortgage reporting team at Bankrate implore consumers to enlist the support of a knowledgeable realtor to steer them through the competition. Buyers and sellers have a unique opportunity in the current market, but each must stay aggressive and calculated in their approach to capitalize. 

NOTE: This past June marked the first time since 2020 that the volume of existing-home sales rose as more houses hit on the market. (Courtesy of The Balance)

A Spike in Job Openings

Despite many lenders and banks reporting a decline in the volume of loan originations, hiring is seeing a dramatic increase as the economy heals. Courtesy of the National Mortgage News: “Users of the company’s compensation system found year-over-year processor headcounts in the first quarter were up 58% from a year ago. The number of registered loan officers increased by 32%.” The search consultants at Hunter Hollis confirm this growth and anticipate high demand in the real estate, mortgage, and title industry among those seeking a career change. With interest rates expected to remain low, many organizations are experiencing various career professionals who want to get in on the action.

What The Remote Work Shift Means in Mortgage/Real Estate

Regarding Potential Buyers

COVID-19 has forced employees from all lines of work into temporary or permanent remote working environments. With the ability to operate from a home office for the foreseeable future, homebuyers have reevaluated their priorities and created new arrangements for their futures. They have more freedom than ever before when choosing where and how they want to live. What does this look like in real life? Forget the perk of dodging NYC, Chicago, LA, or other big-city rush hours; employees can ditch their current home’s upscale, costly lifestyle for a more reasonable and desirable one. Whether it is to move closer to family or find peace and safety in a rural or suburban area, people across the country are taking advantage of the opportunity. In fact, a recent study from H.R. Executive revealed that 58% of workers would “absolutely” look for a new job if they were not allowed to continue working remotely. 

Regarding Your Employees & Talent Recruitment

Talent demand is high within the mortgage and title industry, and despite the plethora of job seekers, employers are admittingly finding it hard to fill their open positions with highly skilled personnel. Employers’ ability to adapt to the times plays a significant role in keeping up with competitors and constructing a healthy recruitment marketing model. Being locked down to one location due to a job is a thing of the past. Many employers have opened their opportunities to fully remote and semi-remote positions to adhere to national guidelines and reach a higher quality of talent recruitment.

Tech Trends via The MPA

The Rise of Tech-Savvy Home Buyers: “Where some companies were reluctant to invest in tech advancements prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, most lenders now recognize the need to offer online mortgage solutions.” – Allison Leung, Maxwell Financial 

Driven by customers’ developing expectations in “speed, seamlessness, convenience, personalization, and transparency,” here are a few of the MPA’s revealed tech trends that experts presume will shape the future of the mortgage industry:

  1. Adopting API To Improve Efficiency

Mortgage lenders are taking part in the transcendence of application programming interfaces (API) to streamline business processes. From workflow automation, data accuracy assurance, and facilitated compliance, employers are making a pivotal effort to stay up to date with the latest technology trends. Leung states: “A lack of efficiency in back-office operations not only affects loan processing speeds and loan officer morale, it also has an impact on the saleability of loan products overall.”

  1. Improving Self-Service & Omni-Channel Capabilities

The digital home-buying experience is here to stay. Allowing consumers to engage with you through their preferred method of communication will open up your lead attraction capabilities. I.T. tech consulting firm, Infosys, believes that if lenders can provide “online calculators, scenario analysis tools, and open mobile communication channels,” they will see lead conversation improve. 

“For many, working with lenders that offer an online experience that allows them to get quickly pre-approved, lock in their rate and upload required mortgage documentation is a welcomed departure from the traditional mortgage process.” – Glenn Brunker, Ally Home.

  1. Increased Machine Learning (ML) & Artificial Intelligence (A.I.)

Infosys suggest that the adoption of ML & A.I. can increase speed and efficiency within the document-intensive process for lenders. Key examples include paperwork organization and analysis and borrowers’ salary and credit history assessment. Completing preliminary mortgage advising tasks and offering product recommendations through the use of an A.I. chatbot will remove tedious, repetitive tasks from your desk.

Homebuyers Statistics: (Pulled Directly From Mortgage Calculator)

  • First-Time Buyers– The number of first-time buyers entering the housing market fell to its lowest percentage since 1981.
  • Median Age and Income of First-Time Buyers– The average age of first-time homebuyers in the United States stands at 31, showing little to no change over the last few years. Their average annual income was approximately $68,300. The median cost of homes purchased by first-time buyers is $169,000.
  • Median age and Income of Repeat Buyers– The average age and income of repeat buyers remain relatively stable, with a median age of 53 and an income of approximately $95,000 per year. The average cost of a home purchased by a repeat buyer is $240,000.
  • Household Composition of Homebuyers– The statistical make-up of home buyers has remained unchanged over the last few years, with 65% being married couples, 16% single women, 9% single men, and 8% unmarried couples.
  • Financing Profiles– 88% of all buyers financed their purchase, with younger buyers more likely to rely on financing than consumers aged 64 or older. 93% of first-time buyers opted for a fixed-rate mortgage, with 35% financing their purchase with an FHA-backed mortgage. The average down payment for first-time buyers was 6% of the total cost of their home, while the average down payment for repeat buyers was 13%.
  • Housing Profiles– 79% of buyers purchased a detached single-family home, while 16% bought a townhouse or condo. The average home purchased had three bedrooms and two baths.
  • Average Time Between Moves– The average time a family is expected to stay in their home is approximately 13 years.

Final Thoughts

In a recent writeup for NextAdvisor, Finance Journalist Jason Stauffer surveyed what mortgage experts project for the coming months/years. Surmised from industry specialists Lindsey Piegza with Stifel Financial; Tian Liu with Enact Mortgage Insurance; Jon Bodan with Perpetual Financial Group; Erin Sykes with NestSeekers International; and Robert Frick with Navy Federal Credit Union, the most commonly relayed messages held true to these three common themes: 

  1. A slight, gradual increase in mortgage rates, but remaining below 5% for the foreseeable future.
  2. Demand has overwhelmed supply, and the low housing inventory remains the greatest concern for lenders and homebuyers.
  3. Lenders are pursuing borrowers. While potential homebuyers are experiencing decreased odds at landing their future home, lending professionals and real estate agents are enduring increased workloads.

Learning About NexGoal

Want NexGoal to help you access the often-closed community of passive candidates and start sourcing top-performing employees for your organization? We have tracked great success within the mortgage and title industry and would love to introduce you to talent we believe in! Contact our CEO, Kevin Dahl, at kevindahl@nexgoal.com to start putting your plan into action.

*Reference this article, and we will promote your job openings on LinkedIn and/or Indeed for free!

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