With the first half of the year behind us and H2 truly underway, Senior Recruitment Advisor Jude Fletcher tells us what she’s seen from the Scottish Central Belt market over the past 6 months.
I am a Senior Recruitment Advisor focusing on permanent HR recruitment across the Central Belt of Scotland. I have supported clients with the successful recruitment of a variety of HR roles, from HR Assistant all the way up to Head of HR.
Reflecting on the first half the year, there is no doubt that the market has been quite challenging. There are various factors which impact the job market, all of which are usually out-with our control, creating peaks and troughs. Having worked in recruitment now for almost six years, I have experienced both the highs and the lows!
Since January, we have unfortunately been seeing redundancies and restructures across multiple sectors, including Financial Services, which has increased the number of available candidates and created a very chaotic and competitive job market. When advertising our opportunities we have been inundated with applications, sometimes in excess of 300, which gives an indication of volume of candidates looking for a new role at the moment.
Candidates, when selected for interview, are often faced with multiple stages and drawn out processes which can leave them feeling flat and unmotivated. We appreciate how difficult it can be to navigate the market as a job seeker right now and are always here to offer advice or support where we can.
Political turbulence worldwide has meant that a number of organisations have been in a holding pattern, unsure whether to make investments or delay until things look a bit more certain. Positively, this brought an uptick in interim opportunities due to teams being overwhelmed by work but organisations – with budgets tight – hesitant about increasing headcount.
With the new financial year in April we were optimistic that there would be an increase in permanent opportunities with new budgets being set etc., however the UK General Election has been on everyone’s mind and has impacted decision making and slowed down processes. With a new government in place, there are sure to be changes and we are staying positive that this will result in opportunities, quicker processes and a renewed energy in the job market. We are ready for it!
Get in touch with Jude at jude.fletcher@hunteradams.co.uk or connect with her on LinkedIn here.
