Hyundai recruiting workers

Hyundai Motor said Thursday that it is recruiting workers with experience as well as those who obtained doctoral degrees from local universities.

The nation’s top automaker began accepting job applications from qualified candidates yesterday with an application deadline of April 2, the company said.

“Our focus is to acquire talents in sectors such as connected cars, software and design,” said a spokesperson from Hyundai.

According to its website, Hyundai Motor will be hiring workers in 47 divisions. Some of the fields that the automaker is looking into include research and development sectors such as user experience design, IT software development as well as quality control for eco-friendly cars. Other than R&D, it will look for suitable candidates in management, brand marketing and law.

In terms of hiring those with doctoral degrees or postdocs, the automaker will look for candidates with expertise to conduct research and development mainly in emerging industries such as the development of eco-friendly vehicle parts and information and communication technology for connected cars.

Hyundai’s strategy to hire workers with experience or in a field of expertise is in line with the current trend of companies trying to hire employees based on their qualifications and job descriptions, according to analysts.

“Even for entry-level workers, companies are looking for those with a certain level of experience in the field that they are applying for,” said a former director at JobKorea, a major internet recruitment portal. “Those with internship experience in the field or with expertise and knowledge obviously have the edge and Hyundai Motor is an exemplary case of such a trend.”

With the routine entry-level recruitment for the first half of the year well under way, conglomerates in Korea are expected to hire fewer workers than the past, largely due to the continuous struggle to keep the local shipbuilding industry afloat. Still, Hyundai Motor and its affiliates are projected to hire as many as 10,000 new entry-level workers this year, a similar volume as in the past, including office positions and factory workers, according to a company spokesperson.

BY CHOI HYUNG-JO [choi.hyungjo@joongang.co.kr]