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It’s great news that senior executive vacancies have increased at such a strong rate – more than 30% year on year, according to figures from search firm InterExec.
The fact that big bosses are putting their heads above the parapet reflects positively that the rest of the market is in good health.
What stood out, however, was that one of the key growth sectors for executives with £200,000-plus salaries was financial services – an area where bosses have attracted much scrutiny and criticism since the start of the financial crisis.
Bank bosses became such a key feature of our business headlines, for all the wrong reasons, that it might make you wonder why senior execs in this industry would want to take a punt on a new role. Whether they’ve been accused of turning a blind eye to the rigging of interest rates or – in the case of former Co-op boss Paul Flowers – a whole lot worse, it takes a tough cookie to take on one of these high profile roles.
In addition, the Bank of England has recently announced new plans to claw back bonuses from poorly performing bosses up to seven years after they have been awarded – so the days of long lunches and champagne are far behind. To get your bonus, you’ve really got to show you deserve it.
That said, as InterExec points out, increased regulation, compliance and risk in the financial services sector also means it needs to attract the very best talent to make the tough decisions associated with this climate. And companies are prepared to pay for it, too – during the last quarter salary brackets have been steadily on the up. Anyone whose pay is more than £500,000 will have seen their pay packet go up by 25%, InterExec estimates.
So perhaps the rewards make taking that risk worthwhile. Plus, with more and more measures in place to ensure our senior executives take note of their moral compass, they should have nothing to hide and simply be able to get on with the job.
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