The career ladder for recent graduates isn't just getting taller—it’s getting steeper. With unemployment for new grads hitting 5.8% (a decade-high, excluding the pandemic), the "entry-level" landscape is shifting beneath our feet.
As AI reshapes productivity and companies rethink their hiring strategies, many young professionals are asking: How do I stay indispensable in an automated world?
1. Know Your "Commercial DNA."
David Kostin, Chief U.S. Equity Strategist at Goldman Sachs, recently shared a blunt but vital piece of advice: Understand exactly where you fit into the business.
It’s no longer enough to just "do the work." To thrive, you need to:
Identify how your specific role contributes to the company’s bottom line.
Understand the "commercial process" of your firm.
Anticipate how your value proposition might change as technology evolves.
"If you understand where you sit and your contributions to the commercial process, then you can see how that changes over time." — David Kostin
2. The Rise of the "Human Premium."
While AI literacy is the fastest-growing skill on LinkedIn, technical prowess is becoming the baseline, not the differentiator. Wall Street is placing a higher premium on "soft" skills that ChatGPT can’t replicate.
The New Top 5 Skills for 2025:
AI Literacy (The Foundation)
Conflict Mitigation
Adaptability
Process Optimization
Innovative Thinking
In short: Use AI to handle the data, but use your judgment, context, and self-awareness to lead the strategy.
3. AI: Tool or Terminator?
Despite the headlines about job losses, Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon offers a more nuanced view. He doesn't see AI killing the banking industry, but rather changing the nature of the work.
| The Old Way | The AI-Enhanced Way |
| Manual data entry and basic modeling | AI-driven data synthesis |
| Junior staff bogged down in "grunt work." | Analysts focusing on high-level interpretation |
| Focus on technical output | Focus on increased human productivity |
Solomon notes that while the pipeline into Wall Street is tightening—evidenced by declining placement numbers at schools like MIT and NYU—the demand for "smart people" who can leverage these tools remains high.
4. Advice for the Long Game
If you're feeling the pressure to land a six-figure role immediately, Solomon has a final message: Don't be in a hurry.
Growth often comes from the "ugly" assignments—the tasks you didn't want to do but took on anyway. In an era of cyclical layoffs and economic uncertainty, patience and a willingness to tackle uncomfortable challenges are your greatest assets.
The entry-level market is more competitive than ever, but the formula for success is becoming clearer. Master the tech, double down on your human intuition, and never lose sight of how you personally drive value for your firm.