He submitted over 500 resumes on LinkedIn and was automatically rejected. Experts' warning: “Mechanical CV submission is a failure”
Finding a job in Romania in 2026 has become an almost impossible mission, even for specialists with solid experience. The case of Sergiu Stan, a software tester who submitted more than 500 applications to LinkedIn in a single year only to be hit with automatic rejections, has sparked a heated debate online. Beyond the personal drama, the numbers show a harsh reality: the IT bubble has burst, job offers have fallen by 13%, and competition has reached its highest level in the last decade. “Adevărul” analyzed together with experts Ana Călugăru (eJobs) and Doru Şupeăla the mechanisms of a labor market that no longer forgives mistakes in approach and why the mechanical sending of CVs is a sure recipe for failure.
The IT industry has come out of the period of accelerated expansion of the previous years. PHOTO: Freepik
Sergiu Gabriel Stan currently works as a software tester at the WindSoft company. However, he has been trying to find another job for more than a year and says he is constantly being turned down or not getting any response from employers.
“I don't understand how I got to the point where finding a job has become almost impossible. For more than a year I've been constantly trying to get hired. I have over 500 applications on LinkedIn alone, not counting the other platforms, WhatsApp groups or direct applications. I redid my CV countless times, adapted it for each role, read tips, tried to improve everything related to the recruitment process.” he wrote in a post published on LinkedIn.
According to his own calculations, he sent more than 500 applications on LinkedIn alone, not including other recruitment platforms, WhatsApp groups or direct applications to companies. He redid his CV several times, adapted it for each role and tried to follow the recommendations of recruitment specialists. But the result was, in most cases, the same standard message: “Thank you for your interest, but I have chosen another candidate.”
Stan says he's also applied for entry-level positions or fields where no prior experience was required. The lack of any concrete feedback led him to believe that the problem is no longer just the IT industry, but the entire labor market.
Fewer jobs, more applicants
Ana Călugăru, Head of Communications at eJobs, explains that the labor market is going through a period of slowdown fueled by several economic and geopolitical factors.
“The labor market started the year on a note of caution on the part of employers, but this caution later turned into a brake. We are talking about the war in the Middle East, the increase in fuel prices, political instability in Romania and very high inflation. In this context, many employers have tempered their expansion plans“, explained Ana Călugăru.
According to eJobs data, the number of jobs published in the first months of 2026 decreased by approximately 13% compared to the same period last year. At the same time, the number of applications reached the highest level in the last decade. This combination, fewer available seats and many more applicants, has significantly increased the competition for almost any available position.
IT is no longer “El Dorado”
The case of Sergiu Stan also reflects the profound transformation of the IT industry, considered for years the engine of the labor market in Romania. Ana Călugăru explains that the IT industry has come out of the period of accelerated expansion of the previous years. The elimination of tax incentives and the increase in costs for companies have caused many firms to reduce their pace of hiring or even freeze recruitment.
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“Strictly in terms of IT, we are no longer talking about such a “hot” field either this year, or even last year, but since the end of 2024. There are several reasons for this change. First, IT was in a growth bubble that, at some point, burst, as was natural. Second, the field lost tax benefits for employees, and this changed the calculations of companies. Under the conditions of a higher level high tax rate, employers are thinking twice before expanding their teams,” stated Ana Călugăru.
Conversely, demand for skilled workers remains high. Electricians, plumbers, welders or construction workers continue to find well-paying jobs relatively easily, amid investments in infrastructure and energy.
“It's not a crisis. It's a resettlement”
Management consultant Doru Şupeala rejects the idea of a generalized crisis and says that the labor market is going through a recalibration process.
“It is not a crisis. I think it is a resettlement of the labor market, to which people should respond intelligently. I have not seen any company that, if it finds a valuable person, does not try to make a place for him in the team”said Doru Supeala.
In his view, many candidates make the mistake of automatically applying to dozens of jobs without researching the companies or personalizing how they contact employers.
“Most candidates wait to be recruited: they go to job sites, see an ad and send their CV. In many cases, they apply to five, ten or twenty jobs a day, without carefully reading the requirements and without researching the company. They do not try to find out who the employer is, what values they have, what they look for in candidates or what kind of attitude they appreciate. They simply apply automatically. Obviously, such an approach does not bring success.” said the consultant.
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“The process must be reversed”
The solution proposed by Supeăla requires a complete change of approach. The candidate should choose the companies they really want to work for and get in direct contact with the people there.
“Such a strategy completely changes the situation in favor of the candidate. First, you get to talk directly with people in the company and get their attention. Second, you demonstrate real interest, documentation and an attitude that employers appreciate very much. At that moment you are no longer one of hundreds of candidates, but become the only candidate they analyze in that context.” considers the consultant.
He recommends identifying a small number of relevant companies, studying the organizational culture and contacting recruiters or managers directly through LinkedIn, at job fairs or through professional networking.
According to Şupeala, this strategy gives the candidate the chance to stand out from the mass of hundreds of almost identical CVs and become a memorable profile for the employer.
However, the specialist admits that recruitment also retains a dose of risk. That's exactly why, he says, candidates need to build a smarter strategy than just mechanically sending out hundreds of applications.
