Confidence returns to the recruitment sector

Anna Scott

The jobs market is showing signs of recovery. Over the last few weeks a wide range of statistics from different sources have been published showing evidence of employers hiring, recruitment agencies experiencing growth and unemployment falling.

The Office for National Statistics’ latest job figures revealed that the number of employed people in the UK had risen to 29.84 million in July – an increase of 80,000 over three months. This lead Chancellor George Osborne to say the economy had “turned a corner”.

There’s little doubt that for the recruitment sector specifically, business is growing. The interims market is slowly but steadily improving in terms of placements for individuals and billing rates.

Recruitment agencies are not just seeing an increase in net fee income, but many are planning to open new offices in the next 12 months.

Many across business and politics are using the phrase “green shoots” with abandon – the situation has changed considerably since 2009, when Labour business minister Baroness Vadera was widely lambasted for saying there were signs of green shoots in the economy.

Yet the environment is still challenging. Financial growth and increasing headcount within agencies remains a big challenge for the sector.

Social media continues to cause concern and misunderstanding. The evolving nature of routes to market for recruiters has seen the use of social media grow in popularity, for both agencies and jobseekers. Yet confusion remains about its effective use among agencies.

The recruitment sectors needs to adapt quickly to both the changing demands of clients and candidates. Many sectors are still experiencing a talent shortage and recruitment agencies will need to be savvy about the ways they are linking candidates with clients. This is why developing effective digital strategies will be vital as business confidence grows.