UK Recruitment Trends Before and After Brexit Part III: The State of Financial Recruiting
While the UK’s vote to leave the EU in June brought uncertainty to many industries, UK recruiters are generally optimistic about their ability to meet the challenges in the coming year. Not only that, but financial recruiters are especially optimistic about the near-term future of recruiting. In a post-Brexit survey, we learned how firms expect to rely on social media and other new technologies to hit their high expectations in the coming years.
Feeling More Secure
The overall results from the survey were heartening, but the optimism shown by financial recruiters could signify high expectations for
a post-Brexit economy. Financial recruiters were much more likely to say they believe the total number of placements will increase in the next two years — a whopping 88 percent said so, compared with 64 percent across all respondents.
In addition, financial recruiters were more likely to say they expect revenue to go up. Across all industries, 68 percent of recruiters said they expect higher revenue, while 78 percent of financial recruiters said the same. In addition, and perhaps more remarkably, no financial recruiters said they expect revenue to drop, while 14 percent of all respondents did.
Ready for Challenges
While financial recruiters appear to have a sunnier outlook in general, they are clear-eyed when it comes to dealing with recruitment challenges. Two-thirds of financial recruiters expect a shortage of skilled candidates in their sector over the next two years, comparable to the 65 percent reported by all recruiters. At the same time, though, 50 percent of financial recruiters say specialised skill shortages will be the biggest industry challenge over the next two years, compared with 38 percent across all industries.
While financial recruiters are more concerned than all recruiters about lack of skills, they’re less concerned about a lack of candidates. The survey found 28 percent of financial recruiters said lack of candidates will be the biggest industry challenge over the next two years, while 35 percent of recruiters in all industries said that will be the biggest challenge.
Relying on Technology
Financial-services firms are ready to use technology to source the candidates they need. While the survey found financial recruiters were about as likely as the recruiting industry as whole to say social media will be the leading source of qualified candidates in the next two years (33 percent for financial recruiters compared with 30 percent as a whole), they were way ahead of their peers in recognising the role new technologies such as automation tools and improved CRM systems will play in the coming years.
The survey found 28 percent of financial recruiters said new technology represents the biggest opportunity for recruiters, while only 19 percent of all recruiters said the same. In addition, 89 percent of financial recruiters said they will use a CRM system in the next two years, compared with 78 percent of all recruiters.
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If you enjoyed this post and want to learn more, take a look at our other two instalments of UK recruitment trends:
