Quarterly Market Update
Welcome to the first edition of Goodman Masson’s quarterly client newsletter for the Finance and Accountancy market. The purpose of this document is to give you a succinct overview of the employment market and to identify any trends or developments across the UK.
Please scroll down to read the update in full, or use the quick links below to navigate to the most relevant sections.
As this is the first time I have sent this to you I would be keen to hear your thoughts and comments, whether or not you find it useful, and what you would like to see included in future editions. If you would like to give feedback, please reply to this email with your comments, and I will try to incorporate any suggestions in the future.
Should you have any further thoughts or queries, please don’t hesitate to contact me on scott.nye@goodmanmasson.com or +44 (0)20 7019 8805, and I will contact you at a convenient time.
Warm regards,
Scott
Scott Nye | Senior Consultant
Banking & Financial Services
Direct: +44 (0)20 7019 8805
Email: scott.nye@goodmanmasson.com
Market Update
In the first three months of 2010, we have been privy to the increased hiring levels within Finance across banking and financial services with a large element of this having been driven by the investment banks. The reasons behind this is threefold: replacing those whose jobs were made redundant as a knee jerk reaction to the credit crunch; to facilitate the various finance integration, transformation & re-engineering projects occurring within many of the major financial institutions; and to support increased business levels as markets move into recovery.
Experienced Hires
The major challenge, as ever, for experienced hires in a recovering market is a shortage of high calibre qualified accountants with relevant experience.
Most institutions seek new hires that will fit in and get working immediately, so have found themselves in a position whereby they are fighting over the same pool of talent. Due to this, bonus guarantees, buy backs, counter offers and candidates receiving multiple offers is once again the norm.
As a reaction to this, some firms have begun to consider high calibre individuals from outside of the FS community, especially into commercial, analytical accounting roles, where we are seeing candidates hired from blue chip corporates who bring with them transferable skills and a fresh outlook. One specific area that has seen a significant growth in hiring volume has been within Commercial Finance (Decision Support, MI, FP&A and Business Partnering).
A number of leading institutions have restructured their finance teams and have off-shored most, if not all, production work. This shift towards a model which sees a smaller number of commercially minded, analytical accountants who can provide a more detailed explanation of what the numbers mean and why, and support the business in the decisions it makes as a result. It is here, in particular, that we are seeing candidates hired from commerce and industry.
It is worth noting that we have seen a significant upturn in the amount of Regulatory Reporting roles registered. Due to legislative changes enforced with a strong political undercurrent we are now seeing a significant upturn in the number of vacancies and this will only continue in the lead up to the General Election. Whatever Government is elected it is likely to make changes to the regulatory landscape and as such we suspect that this area will remain in a busy state for some time to come.
This element of change in Regulatory reporting is underpinning a new trend with these roles now seen as an exciting and challenging area to work in whereas previously it may have lacked some of the glamour of other back/middle office financial control roles. This can be supported by a number of project manager and change management regulatory roles released to market by a number of leading banks in the race to seek regulatory compliance against their competition and in the face of the Government and regulatory bodies who enforce them.
Newly & Part Qualified
The demand for newly qualified accountants has been affected as a consequence of an extremely difficult economic environment. The reduced recruitment in 2009 means ACAs from public practice have not been exhausted to the same extent as was seen in 2006 and 2007.
Typically, at this time of year the bulge bracket banks are already enthusiastically eyeing the fresh pool of talent qualifying in September. While this remains the case, banks recognise that there are still a number of high quality 2009 qualifiers on the market. This situation creates a competitive market place for candidates but arguably a better hunting ground for banks & other financial institutions where the recruitment appetite is again growing.
Additionally, we are noticing an increase in part-qualified recruitment being undertaken across financial control. This can be interpreted as another sign of enhanced confidence & improved sentiment as companies commence longer-term hiring strategies again and look to organically grow teams and provide training for new employees as opposed to hiring solely experienced individuals.
Salary & Bonus
One notable surprise has been the apparent lack of impact of the 2010 bonus pot on candidate movement and the flow of new instructions.
Many were predicting a mass exodus of candidates unhappy with their bonus, however the reality is that this was a blip rather than a major spike of activity with most firms managing to achieve a result of bonuses strong enough to keep staff engaged without feeling they have ‘done well’.
Salaries have maintained pre-credit crunch levels throughout the financial crisis, with bonuses being the main way candidates pay was affected. The competition for candidates has meant that firms still have to pay top end to secure the best talent. Certain banks have been adding in a cash benefit for new employees, essentially increasing salary, offsetting any reduction in bonus and sidestepping any political issues in respect of the overall “bonus pool” paid to staff.
Market Information
Throughout the year I will keep you up to date with current market information, the first of such being the 2010 Salary Guide. As mentioned, should there be anything other than what we send you that you would be interested in receiving, please don’t hesitate to contact me and we will endeavour to include this in the next quarterly update.
2010 Salary Guide
How have salaries been affected by the economic conditions of the past 12 months? If you have not yet received a copy of the 2010 Salary Guide and would like to be sent this, please contact me.
About Goodman Masson
Goodman Masson is the largest Independent Financial Recruiter in the UK and has been recruiting professionally qualified accountants and other finance professionals for over 16 years. With a team of over 90 we hold annual revenues exceeding £15m. Our growth has been built around our knowledge and expertise within the Finance markets and in 2009 alone we successfully worked with 991 separate organisations. Our client portfolio ranges from the Big 4 firms to small independents and the FTSE 100 (67 out of 100) to small entrepreneurial start ups.
Goodman Masson | 7th Floor | 120 Aldersgate Street | London EC1A 4JQ
Main: +44 (0)20 7336 7711 | Fax: +44 (0)20 7336 7722
Web: www.goodmanmasson.com
|