Evaluating Gender Equality in the Recruitment Process: An Application for Professional Figures in the Italian Tourism Sector

In an evolving context, work influences production factors and labor force dynamics. Access to the labor market is crucial for the meeting of supply and demand, with skills playing a key role in improving the competitiveness of businesses and employees, reshaping compensation structures. In an innovation-driven environment, soft skills emerge as a response to the challenge of change, essential for addressing the risk of skills obsolescence. Moreover, it is important to consider gender characteristics in the development of soft skills, as it fosters diversity and promotes a more inclusive and productive work environment. Therefore, analyzing the relationship between the recruitment process and the required skills is critical. This study uses a dataset of over one and a half million job placements across the main macro-sectors in Italy (2016–2024), with statistical units relating to candidates and the soft skills necessary for selection. The analysis focuses on professional profiles within the “Tourism” sector, reclassified according to the ESCO.