Entry-level hiring is declining as AI automates routine tasks, but demand for adaptable, tech-savvy talent is rising. Employers who combine AI adoption with structured career paths, mentorship, and skills development can build a sustainable talent pipeline and gain a competitive advantage in attracting Gen Z workers.
Entry-level positions are a crucial part of the recruitment ecosystem. These roles give graduates, trainees, and job-switchers a chance to learn the basics of their industry while getting some hands-on experience.
Employers also benefit from offering junior positions to inexperienced candidates. Entry-level hires tend to be energetic, curious, and eager to make their mark on their team. These hires provide fresh ideas and new perspectives, while also feeding a talent pipeline that supports the company's long-term future.
However, in recent years, we have seen a drastic change in early career hiring. Postings for entry-level jobs in the U.S. have declined about 35% since January 2023, and it's largely due to AI. Artificial Intelligence offers real savings through process automation, but those processes are typically tasks that would otherwise be handled by a junior employee.
Employers often face a difficult choice: whether to prioritize talent development or focus on cost savings through AI automation. However, with the right strategy, you may not need to make this choice. In fact, your AI strategy could become a major advantage in hiring.
How AI is changing early career hiring
The headline numbers are quite stark:
- Entry-level hiring at the 15 largest tech firms fell 25% between 2023 and 2025
- Workers aged 22-25 in roles with high AI exposure saw a 13% drop in employment since 2022
- The class of 2026 will see a mere 1.6% increase in employment compared to 2025 figures
However, Gen Z and other job market entrants are not taking this lying down. In fact, many of them are embracing AI and preparing to become a vital part of the transformed workforce.
- 36% of Gen Z say they plan to develop GenAI skills in the next year
- Two-thirds of younger workers are helping their senior colleagues to understand AI
- 92% of entry-level job seekers believe that they can adapt to an AI-powered world
All of this presents a unique opportunity for employers. Right now, there is an abundance of fresh, dynamic talent who are keen to start using AI in their day-to-day workflows. With the right strategy, you can snap up this talent and start building a team for the future.
5 steps for designing career paths that attract and develop early career talent
1. Assess your entry-level talent's immediate contributions
Entry-level talent can offer long-term rewards, as your company can fill essential roles through training and development, rather than external recruiting. However, it's important to be realistic about the here and now. How can a new hire contribute to your organization right now?
Work with stakeholders to map out the tasks associated with various entry-level roles. Some of these tasks will be perfect for AI automation, which then leads to another conversation: do you automate that task, or do you retain the manual process so that junior staff can gain experience? Alternatively, you might consider a hybrid process, where the new hire can use AI tools to be more productive.
Action item: Schedule a conversation with leadership to identify the entry-level tasks that are an essential part of professional development.
2. Build visible, credible career paths
SHRM finds that more than a quarter of HR professionals identify unclear advancement pathways as their top challenge in acquiring talent. That problem will deepen as AI compresses entry-level role inventories and candidates become more selective about where they start their careers.
Career paths don't need to be linear. They need to be legible. Early career talent wants to understand what comes next and how to get there; not a guarantee, but a map. Employers who can show a clear progression from an entry-level position to meaningful mid-career roles will stand out against those offering nothing but a job description.
Action item: Map the progression from each entry-level role in your organization to a mid-level position, and make sure that map is visible to new hires from day one, ideally as part of the onboarding conversation.
3. Integrate AI skills into onboarding and development from the start
PwC found that daily AI users are far more likely to report productivity gains (92% vs. 58%) and job security (58% vs. 36%) than non-users. Hands-on AI experience can be a career asset that actively attracts new talent.
This doesn't require a complete overhaul of your development programs. Start by identifying where AI tools are already in use across your teams, then build structured exposure to those tools into the first 90 days. The goal is to give new hires a practical working knowledge of what AI supports, what it doesn't, and where human judgment remains the deciding factor.
Action item: Add a structured AI orientation module to your onboarding program, covering the specific tools your teams use, the tasks they support, and the judgment calls that stay human.
4. Close the mentorship gap
50% of Gen Z workers say they want their managers to teach and mentor them. Only 36% say it actually happens. That gap is one of the most consistent drivers of early attrition, and it's largely a management capability issue rather than a cultural one.
Mentorship at the early career stage is both professionally formative and cost-effective as a development method. But it won't happen reliably unless managers have the time, training, and clear expectation that developing their direct reports is part of the role.
Action item: Add "career development conversations" as a standing agenda item in your managers' regular one-on-ones, and give managers a simple framework for structuring those conversations, such as what to ask, what to listen for, and how to follow through.
5. Make your career development story part of your employer brand
If you've built clear career paths, invested in AI skills development, and closed the mentorship gap, those are concrete differentiators in the early career talent market. But they only matter if candidates know about them. Right now, most mid-market employers undersell this almost entirely.
Career growth and skills development are often the top factors candidates evaluate when considering an employer. Your job postings, careers page, and recruiter conversations should reflect what you actually offer early career candidates. Remember, they're not just considering the role itself, but the trajectory that comes with it.
Action item: Audit your careers page and three to five recent entry-level job postings. Check whether they describe what a new hire can expect to learn, how they'll progress, and what support they'll receive. If they read like a list of requirements with no development story, revise them.
Need help building career paths for early career talent?
Early career talent is your pipeline for future leadership and AI capability. The employers who invest now in structured career paths, real development programs, and visible progression will be far better positioned to attract and retain the workers best equipped to build AI-native ways of working. Waiting to see how the market settles is itself a talent strategy, but not necessarily a good one.
Helios HR can help you build the programs and frameworks to compete for this generation of talent:
- Talent acquisition consulting to redesign your approach to entry-level hiring
- Training and development to build AI skills and career development programs
- HR consulting to design career path frameworks across your organization
- Strategic HR to align your people strategy with where the talent market is heading
Ready to build career paths that attract and develop early career talent? Connect with Helios HR to get started.
FAQ
How is AI affecting entry-level jobs?
AI is reducing routine entry-level tasks but increasing demand for digital, analytical, and adaptable skills. Entry-level roles are evolving rather than disappearing.
How can companies attract Gen Z talent?
Companies attract Gen Z by offering career growth, AI skill development, mentorship, and clear progression paths.
What makes a strong early career program?
A strong program includes structured onboarding, visible career paths, mentorship, and skills development aligned with future workforce needs.
Should companies replace entry-level jobs with AI?
No. Leading organizations combine AI automation with talent development to build sustainable pipelines and future leadership.
Additional Resources
- Deloitte Insights, Early Career Workers and AI in the Workplace
- SHRM, Empowering Employee Growth: Building Dynamic Career Paths and Ladders
- SHRM, 2025 Talent Trends