THE NEW FACE OF RECRUITMENT

With many firms on the hunt for talent to push forward with growth plans, the big question is—has hiring changed?

Words by andreea dulgheru

CANDIDATES KNOW THEIR WORTH FAR MORE THAN THEY DID A FEW YEARS AGO. THEY KNOW IT’S A COMPETITIVE MARKET, SO THEY CAN NEGOTIATE MORE”

When Covid-19 hit the specialist finance market back in 2020, many firms had to make significant redundancies to keep afloat. Since then, specialist finance firms have been focusing on rebuilding their teams in a mission to take their business to the next level—although this could be hampered by recent market volatility.

“When the confidence returned, a lot of liquidity came back into the market and, with that, the need and desire to get that money out the door and help property developers and investors to fulfil their goals and objectives. On the back of this, we’ve definitely seen a massive increase in recruitment, not only to fill previous roles, but also for growth,” says Nick Wilcox, founding director at Valorem Partners.

“There has been a slight dip in recruitment activity over the past few months because of what happened with the interest rates, but not much—people are just waiting for the dust to settle a little bit.”

There is no denying that the demand for new staff is there. However, as some people have questioned whether the talent pool has decreased, the big question is: does the specialist finance market have enough talent to meet this?

While Nick doesn’t believe the talent pool has shrunk, he says it feels like it has because the recruitment market is so competitive right now. “I think the reason for this is because there are so many new players in the sector. On top of that, everyone wants to expand further,” he explains, adding that the balance between the rate of new entrants and the growth of more established companies, versus the number of people available in the industry is currently in jeopardy.

To level the playing field, Nick believes companies and recruiters need to broaden their horizons and target people with transferable skills from other sectors, such as banking, real estate investment firms and investment funds to fill the vacancies. On top of that, he strongly believes graduate schemes are a must in order to identify and nurture the next generation of talent.

Unrealistic expectations

Adam Massie, founder and director of recruitment at Willisia, however, has a different opinion. While he believes there is enough talent to go around, he points to two big reasons why employers are struggling to hire. First, is having inflated expectations. “If you want a graduate with 10 years of experience, for example, nobody is going to match this. If your expectations aren’t realistic, then your talent pool will be more limited,” he explains.

The second issue is some recruiters are not properly advertising their clients’ roles. “Let’s say a recruiter approaches somebody on behalf of a company with the ‘perfect job’. However, instead of actually talking about how they could fit into the business and the reasons why they would want to join them, they list all the things they would expect that person to do. Of course, the candidate will not be very interested in that, so that firm is missing out on somebody who could be a good fit for the business, only because the recruiter hasn’t done their job properly,” elaborates Adam.

According to him, this issue stems from recruiters failing to communicate with companies to learn more about the ins and outs of their business, what exactly they are looking for in a candidate, and how that person will fit within the team. This is why Adam encourages recruitment firms to speak to their clients to gain a full understanding of the business and their requirements to identify their unique selling points, properly advertise the job, and approach the best candidates for the role.

Office vs home

Despite the specialist finance industry recovering in the aftermath of the pandemic, its effects on recruitment can still be felt—particularly when it comes to what employers and candidates are looking for. One of the biggest changes it has triggered is applicants’ demand for flexibility. “Hybrid or remote work has brought so many positive things from a mental health perspective, so now you’ve got people who don’t want to sacrifice their quality of life by going back to the office full time,” says Kerry.

“You also have train fares going up and the cost of living increasing substantially, while salaries have remained the same, so people are reluctant to come back to the office.”

However, according to Kerry, this is clashing with employers’ desire to return to a full-time office workforce, as they believe this is more efficient.

“A team is more productive when they are together: you can come up with ideas, help each other and, in the end, the job gets done better and more quickly, which is particularly important with bridging finance. So I can understand the employer’s perspective,” Kerry notes.

With both sides unwilling to fully give up what they want, the fight between office and remote/hybrid work continues to pose a challenge for both companies and applicants.

Pay and perks

Another trend that recruiters have seen is candidates’ increased demand for benefits and higher salaries.

According to Kerry, 25% of vacancies handled by KFS Recruitment in 2022 were initially turned down at the offer stage by candidates for not providing the desired work benefits or salary. The focus was then on negotiating better contract terms, to ensure that the client didn’t lose their chosen candidate.

“At a time when the NHS is collapsing, a lot of candidates are placing more importance on the benefits package, particularly if they were previously working for a firm where they were getting life insurance and private healthcare. And they are certainly demanding it, so firms have to match these,” she says.

Nick confirms this, adding that candidates’ expectations around salary, commission and benefits are much higher than a few years ago, something he believes may be a result of the ongoing “war for talent”.

“Candidates know their worth far more than they did a few years ago. They know it’s a competitive market, so they can negotiate more. Therefore, they’re either looking to move to a new job for a substantially higher package or they are aiming to get a counter-offer with an increased salary from their current employer. It’s very much a candidate-driven market at the moment,” states Nick.

And it seems that firms know this as well, as Valorem Partners has seen record counter-offers in 2022, as companies are looking to keep their people. “The most frequent counter offers we’ve seen are either £5,000 or £10,000 increases to the original salary. The highest one we’ve seen in 2022 was a £30,000 bump in the base salary,” elaborates Nick. However, applicants’ higher hopes go beyond remuneration and benefits. Nick tells me an increasing number of people searching for a new role are putting a lot more effort into learning about a company’s history, culture and values before making a career move—motivated by their desire to stay within a firm for the long term.

“People are really doing their homework before entering an interview process or accepting a job offer. Before, we’d only have one initial call with a candidate to discuss a role before moving to an interview. What we’re seeing now is different—we have two to three calls with them, and really give them clarity around a firm’s funding lines, mid- to long-term goals and objectives, how they looked after their staff during Covid, and how they invest in their people,” says Nick.

Sticking together

While there might be some differences between what candidates and employers want from one another, it seems there is one thing that both parties desire from each other: a long-term partnership.

As we discuss recruitment and job retention, Adam jokingly compares this to dating and finding a romantic partner—the goal is to never have to date again: “No one wants to leave a job; everyone wants security.”

So how can firms ensure their employees will stick with them? According to Adam, Kerry and Nick, it all boils down to one essential thing: the company culture.

“A firm is only as good as its employees— so, if your team members aren’t successful and happy long term and they don’t feel valued, they’ll just move on to the next one, and that reflects badly on your company,” explains Kerry.

To do this, Adam emphasises that firms must pay attention to their employees to truly understand their needs and how the company can support them. “Listening is the biggest thing for job retention. Staff will tell you what they need, so if you take the time to hear them out and take that feedback away, they will feel valued and won’t be interested in moving for a job that might pay five grand more,” he says.

Kerry adds that firms should consistently request feedback from staff about the company culture—through confidential surveys or other methods— to identify room for improvement. Ultimately, job satisfaction goes beyond enjoying the work atmosphere. Nick emphasises that employees value having a longer-term career growth plan that they can work towards. This is why he encourages all firms to build a socalled “career flight path” with each employee, to identify their next steps and nurture them to achieve their goals.

“People say they want to get to a certain position but they don’t know how they’re going to get there,” he highlights. “I think employers need to play a key part in helping them build that career plan over a specific period of time—with additional and specific training built in—and then revisiting it at various stages to make sure you’re both on the same page and progressing within the timescales agreed.

“This makes employees feel valued and empowers them because they’re in control of their own careers and destiny—and companies would get a lot of benefit from this.”