The first quarter of the year is traditionally a time when people plan to make lots of changes to their lives with resolutions to improve fitness levels, stop drinking and it seems that this year many also decided the time is right to start reviewing their employment options.
For the first time in nearly two years the demand for new staff has almost been matched by the availability of candidates who are open to opportunities. In January 2022 there has been an 500% increase in the number of candidates open to an approach about a new role compared to the same time last year. “There was a general reluctance to move companies during the pandemic, but now the restrictions are easing, there appears to be more confidence and people are looking to take advantage of the strong demand all across the IT channel” says Marc Sumner CEO at Robertson Sumner.
In the first three months of the year the easing of pandemic restrictions, improved market confidence and strong demand for new staff across the IT channel has seen a further steep increase in recruitment activity.
“As a business we have already seen a 60% uplift in the number of people starting new jobs in the first few weeks of 2022 compared to 2021 and speaking with many business leaders the strong demand is likely to continue for the rest of 2022.” Sumner added.
One of the most important considerations affecting companies hiring activities is the fact that salary levels have continued to increase at pace. Practically everybody who hands their notice in, is being counter-offered in some way, making a potentially difficult decision to leave their employer even more difficult. Forcing businesses in all parts of the channel to review their pay structures and become creative to entice people to join them in the first place.
It isn’t always as easy as simply throwing money at the candidate scarcity problem. It is imperative to consider the value of existing employees too. “There have been instances where some clients have issues with existing team members feeling under-valued in comparison to new additions. So in some cases these ‘golden-handshakes’ have had an overall negative affect to team morale and candidate attrition” Sumner warned.
Long-term hiring managers should be looking at long term strategies on how they build talent pools to build a strong pipeline of candidates for future growth plans. Building a strong partnership with a dedicated recruiter is also another way to ensure you continue to build talent pools for long term growth. “In 2021 clients who utilised our ‘partnership model’ filled 100% of their roles and this requires investment on both sides to make it work effectively” added Sumner.
