Currently, the overriding message from the market is that of positivity. Following an extended run of some 12 months where we have seen job numbers about 20% down on expectation, organisations as a whole are experiencing an increase in pressure to hire. For the first time in a fair while customers are coming to us as the pressures of time to hire outstrip the cost of hire.
Our Commerce practice has grown significantly over the last 6 months and we have seen job volumes rise significantly, with a 100% increase in interim opportunities and competition for talent soaring. Without stating the obvious, this means across contingent hiring candidates are receiving multiple offers, counter offers and so the time/efficiency of the hiring process becomes key – interestingly, and slightly confusingly, many hiring managers are not responding to this pressure. Functionally we have seen increased demand in L&D and OD. The lack of top quality tech recruiters remains a challenge and as such salaries in this space are being driven up way above market rate.
The ever changing face of the city sees our Financial & Professional Services practice consistently deliver into an excellent blend/diversity of organisation – wait for it….even the investment banks are hiring again! Job numbers have been improving across all levels, specifically with an increase in roles from entry to mid-management level. Specifically smaller boutique firms in Finance, the Professions and Consulting have all been busy recently hiring both new and replacement hires. True generalists always remain in high demand and there is a growing need for outstanding talent management profiles. In fact, specialist roles are seeing a resurgence as a whole.
That said, the Reward & Analytics market saw a quieter than usual start to the calendar year with job numbers, particularly in Interim, being slightly down year on year. There didn’t seem to be any particular reason for this other than, in part, due to the larger corporates not requiring as much short term cover. This month has seen volumes bounce back strongly and we are now managing a record number of mandates across the reward, MI and systems space. This volatility is very typical of the Reward market as a whole.
The story is equally positive for our Payroll division as they see a continued growth through volume repeat business and continued referrals. Much of our legacy work has been across Financial and Professional Services, and now we are making considerable inroads into broader industry, which provides our customer base with a far more varied and diverse portfolio of opportunity. Revenue is up by almost 100% year on year!
Human Capital Services is leveraging the Brexit phenomenon well. The number of Global Mobility roles are down in the UK, both international and immigration roles are up. We have seen a real increase in global mandates, driven to some degree by big wins with global consultancy firms.
We moved into our new Birmingham office in March, with one additional hire, to create a team of 3 in our Midlands region. We are very keen to make an additional hire if anyone has any recommendations! The Midlands is increasingly buoyant and seems to have largely avoided any post-Brexit fluctuations.
Our unique Part-Time business, is also flourishing! Jane Middleton outlines more in her latest article
In summary, we have headed into the second calendar quarter of the year with an optimistic outlook for the year ahead, let’s cross our fingers for no more global or local political/economic surprises!