Affected by the low birthrate in Japan, many companies actively recruit engineers from all over the world in search of advanced technological capabilities. The hiring of foreign engineers tends to be prominent among them, and the diversity of nationalities, cultures and expertise drives business growth. In this article, we delve into the country of origin of foreign engineers in Japanese companies and examine emerging trends and their impact.

Background of hiring foreign engineers

As the importance of diversity is recognized and globalization advances, Japanese companies are also becoming more active in hiring foreign engineers. Furthermore, the shortage of IT talent in Japan is also driving this trend, and the recruitment of foreign engineers who bring diverse perspectives and knowledge improves the competitiveness of companies. Rakuten, Mercari, and SoftBank, which are often mentioned in this article, are promoting their companies’ growth by hiring foreign engineers.

Country of origin of foreign engineers

According to a summary of “Foreign Employment Status” published by the the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, the number of foreign workers in Japan was approximately 1,822,725 as of October 2021, an increase of 5.5% compared to the previous year. By nationality, Vietnam has the largest number of foreign nationals at 462,384 (25.4% of the total), followed by China at 385,848 (21.2%) and the Philippines at 206,050 (11.3%).

mhlw.go.jp/content/11655000/001044540.pdf

Looking at the number of foreign engineers with the status of residence of Engineer/Humanities/International Services (working in the IT industry), the largest number was from China (103, 65), followed by Vietnam (69,926) and Korea (25,267).

https://www.mhlw.go.jp/content/11655000/001044544.pdf

A Changing Trend

In the past, there were more workers in South Korea with the status of residence of Specialist in Humanities/International Services (working in the IT industry) than in Vietnam, but the trend has changed significantly in the past few years. The change in trend from Korea to Vietnam is also related to the results of Vietnam’s growth. Vietnam has seen remarkable economic growth in recent years, and its IT industry is developing rapidly. That’s why Vietnam has more and more talented engineers, and many Japanese companies are hiring them. The increase in the number of Vietnamese engineers presents a new opportunity for Japanese companies to diversify their supply of human resources.

Future prospects

The development of the IT industry in Vietnam and the increase in the supply of human resources are expected to continue. As a result, the flow of international workers is likely to move further to Vietnam. It is expected that Japanese companies will take advantage of this opportunity to hire more engineers and even strengthen their local operations. Deepening our business relationship with Vietnam will enable us to develop new markets, improve our products and services, and even drive innovation.

But changes in the flow of workers will force South Korea and other countries to adjust. South Korea will need to improve education and training, as well as rethink how it accepts foreign workers, to solve its domestic labor shortage problem. With these impacts taken into account, countries are moving forward with strategic responses that are likely to attract good engineers.

Conclusion

Future trends in the labor market are expected to create a more diverse and competitive environment. Japanese companies, in particular, are strengthening their technological capabilities and promoting organizational diversity through the recruitment of foreign engineers.

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