Forecasts for the recruitment industry’s coming year are positive.There are signs across the board which indicate an increase in turnover. The road to recovery from a recession is always tough but recruitment is one of the industries which is first to see the benefits of a growing economy.
As business in the UK begins to return to pre-recession levels of activity, the first step taken by most will be recruitment. The graduate pool out there is larger, more diverse and richer than ever, and employers are looking to take advantage.
Speaking on the positive picture for recruitment in 2013, the director of policy and professional services at the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, Tom Hadley, said the following:
“The war for talent has begun. January saw the sharpest rise in starting salaries in well over a year, after a nine month trend of increases.”
The Recruitment and Employment Confederation have reported this month that employers’ confidence in UK job prospects rose at the end of last year. All signs are suggesting that 2013 will be a far stronger year for employment and, therefore, for the recruitment industry.
January has been a success story, bolstering the credibility of positive forecasts given towards the end of last year. The REC note that the number of permanent appointments has risen for the fourth consecutive month which is great news for every recruitment agency.
Job vacancies are rising in number faster than they have in nearly two years. The number of available temporary positions has also increased, doing so for the sixth consecutive month.
The majority of this growth in the demand for staff is stemming from the private sector. The public sector continues to be the subject of harsh government cuts, with the level of staff demand falling for both permanent and temporary positions.
This news of increased employment figures is not only music to the ears of the recruiters and the unemployed, but it also offers an opportunity for greater flow between workplaces. Bernard Brown, from KPMG, explains:
“Demand for staff is at its highest peak for almost two years, meaning that employees who may have been too nervous to change jobs in recent months might consider the benefits of a fresh challenge.”
Mr. Bloom goes on to predict how this might impact businesses generally:
“Given the skills gap that continues to plague many sectors, increased availability of qualified and experienced staff could help fill the capability gap many employers have wanted to plug for some time … Staff may also have room for manoeuvre, as the data indicates starting salaries rose again in January, seeing their sharpest climb since September.”
As the job market begins to become a more dynamic environment once again, it is the recruitment industry which stands to benefit most dramatically. As employees fall back into a position from which they are able to make positive career moves, it will be the job of recruitment agencies to seek the right gaps for these candidates to fill.
