Only 7% of all German job advertisements provide information on salary, while 71% address work-life balance.

"Today, employers who offer a strong corporate culture, flexible working models and a good work-life balance in addition to an appropriate salary have a clear advantage. In our report, we investigated the extent to which the expectations of potential candidates are taken into account in job postings,” says Christoph Drebes, CEO of Mystery Minds.

The analysis by Mystery Minds underlines that German companies are already considering the needs of today's potential applicants to some degree in their job postings. For example, fully remote working is offered in 18% of cases, and 58% of employers also allow hybrid working in a combination of home office and on-site work.

However, only 19% of companies described the importance of corporate culture in detail in their job advertisements, while 32% mention it only briefly, and 50% do not mention it at all.

There is also limited transparency regarding compensation: only 7% of job advertisements provide explicit salary information. 51% refer to additional benefits such as perks, company pension schemes, and bonuses. In 42% of job posts, there is no information on remuneration or benefits.

On the positive side, 71 % of the job postings analyzed by Mystery Minds contain explicit offers to promote work-life balance. This shows that many companies have recognized the value of a balanced lifestyle for their employees. 69% of job postings also refer to a good learning culture and opportunities to participate in knowledge-sharing initiatives within the organization.

45% of companies mention diversity, equality, and inclusion initiatives in their job advertisements. The public sector and companies with Germany-wide careers pages are particularly strong in this area.

 

Method of evaluation: Mystery Minds examined 120 job postings, mainly in the area of “knowledge-based” jobs - this covers office jobs in both the academic and non-academic sectors. A small number of non-office-based jobs in the skilled trades, landscaping, or production sectors were also included in the evaluation.