IBM Goes Against the Tide: Three Times More Entry-Level Employees

In recent months, headlines have been dominated by successive and increasingly grim reports from the labor market, especially for people just starting their careers and/or those tied to the IT sector. It is estimated that in 2025 alone, about 250,000 people in the U.S. lost their jobs as part of employment-cost optimization efforts. Against this backdrop, IBM’s announcement stands out in a striking way.

Despite more than 120 years of history, the company remains a significant player in the market. IBM is, in effect, responsible for creating the IT industry, and if we trace the history of nearly any solution used today in computing and data processing, sooner or later we will come across IBM.

IBM’s strategy has always been pragmatic, methodical, and results-focused. The company is bringing that pragmatic approach into the field of AI. Some criticize IBM for being conservative; others praise the company for its caution. That caution can be seen in a new announcement regarding its recruitment policy.

Speaking bluntly about recruitment policy in the industry at a conference in New York, IBM’s Chief HR Officer, Nickle LaMoureux, said: “Yes, it’s all those roles they told us AI would replace.”

Company representatives argue that demand for entry-level roles is not disappearing; only their nature needs to change.

IBM is going against the tide. Hiring is expected to increase “across the board,” although representatives declined to provide figures. Importantly, the policy described above is not a continuation of a trend, but a reversal of it.

According to Makrotrends data, the company has been cutting headcount for years, and the last “positive” year was 2019. In 2023 alone, IBM was reportedly set to shed more than 10% of its workforce, entering 2026 with a labor force hovering around 290,000.

From the context of representatives’ remarks, one could speculate that decision-makers at the company “got burned” by attempts to implement AI too optimistically within its processes, and that the resulting issues are meant to be addressed through increased hiring.

The company survived two world wars and several major economic crises. Most of IBM’s competitors, by contrast, would likely struggle to withstand even a few quarters of higher interest rates.

IBM.US (D1)

The company has experienced a sharp sell-off despite recently holding near record highs. The EMA structure remains bullish, but a return above the FIBO 61.8 level is key for demand. Source: xStation5