Ever since the recession, almost a decade ago, we’ve been told there’s more competition for jobs. After the crash, as companies streamlined and became more efficient, due to financial pressures, there were reports of hundreds queuing around corners whenever a new shopping centre opened, for example, or recruiters becoming buried under CVs whenever positions were advertised - such was the demand for jobs versus their short supply.
Fast-forward to today’s job market, and whilst there are still industries and sectors where jobs seem to be thin on the ground, there are reports of skills gaps in others - where recruiters/employers are practically head-hunting or chasing top talent, using benefits and perks to attract workers.
According to Clayton Recruitment, an agency in the North West, the following roles are the ones they perceive as the most in-demand by employers currently. If any job-seeker is thinking of retraining, they could do worse than consider the following careers…
- Payroll positions
Whereas the trend to move these types of jobs overseas was once popular, according to Clayton, companies are doing an about-turn and bringing them back to the UK. They’ve seen a huge up-turn in demand for payroll clerks, managers and supervisors as a result.
- Maintenance Engineers
There are gaps and holes across the engineering industry in general, stretching into distribution and HGV transportation, but the need for skilled professionals to get production lines up and running as quickly as possible has risen. As companies invest further in automation, this is one sector that looks to be secure with job-seekers for the foreseeable future.
- Credit Control
As businesses tighten their purse strings, the need to ensure swift payment from their customers is another key area where demand is outstripping supply. Though Clayton cite company restructuring as the reason many businesses are needing staff in their credit control departments, they also claim high churn in this sector is another cause.
- Accountants
This has always been a secure career for anyone interested in numbers, but it seems that there’s more need than ever for accountants, and chartered accountants. Savvy businesses are cottoning on to the reporting/statistical value their accounts can give them as they plan ahead; the growth many businesses have seen during the last few years has also resulted in an organic need for more accountants.
- Marketing specialists
It wasn’t that long ago when some businesses didn’t even see the need for a website or online presence for their business. Can you even imagine that now? As the digital revolution has firmly taken hold, companies are feeling the need for marketing specialists - especially those who can steer their online offering and outward marketing.
Clayton’s perspectives relate to the North West, where they’re based. We thought we’d look further across the UK, to see which other sectors are good bets in 2017.
- Plumber
Always in demand with individual homeowners, there’s more need than ever for people with plumbing skills, and on a much bigger scale, as the demand for new houses reaches levels we’ve not seen for a long time. Contractors, and those able to work away from home on large-scale projects, will be sought-after anywhere at the moment.
- Technical Architect
Recruiters have seen the demand for programmers and software designers go stratospheric during the last decade; however, there’s now a growing need for project managers and team leaders in this area, people who can take a team and a brief and make sure it unfolds precisely to clients’ requirements. These specialist managers not only need to hold the ‘soft’ people skills that their peers in other industries would have, they also need to understand projects on a detailed, technical level, which makes them sought after.
- HR Manager
More and more companies are understanding the value of a dedicated HR department. Employee engagement and talent retention are even more important in industries already suffering from skills gaps or a lack of suitable talent; ensuring staff already working for the company feel fulfilled and valued is as important as recruitment. HR managers able to look at the bigger picture with a strategic eye aren’t that common, especially ones that can also apply specialist HR software in their day-to-day.
- Hotel/Hospitality Managers
The consumer has become a lot pickier over recent years, and their expectations, and what they consider ‘standard’ and ‘above-standard’, have increased. It’s not that simple for hotels or leisure outlets to say they go above and beyond, nowadays they’ve got to prove it, which is why managers who focus on making the customer experience unbeatable are incredibly sought after.
- Security Specialist
In relation to number 7, as software and online touch points become more intricate and sophisticated, so must the security to safeguard and protect the consumer and/or company using it. Finding the right employees, those who can be one step ahead of hackers and criminals, are like gold-dust; companies don’t want to find out where they need security after an event has happened, they need to guarantee the safety of their digital offering, to protect their reputation, and they’re willing to pay through the nose for this.
We’re sure that this list could be much longer…what would you add?
