UK recruiters are optimistic about the future of the industry as we head into 2014, with 74% declaring that this year has been better than 2012, and 18% stating that business has remained on an even keel.
The encouraging statistic comes from Mercury xRM software developer and recruitment expert Crimson Limited. The rapid recruitment solutions provider polled 88 businesses from its recruitment partner network on their business levels for 2013 and found that three quarters of recruiters in the UK were celebrating a good year for business, with just two per cent of recruiters stating that 2013 had been a poor year. Only two percent of recruiters had a worse year than they did in 2012, and eleven per cent described 2013 as a ‘fantastic’ year for business.
These figures highlight the optimism within the recruitment industry at a time when the wider UK economy is starting to show signs of recovery and growth. The Autumn statement delivered late last week announced that the projection of UK growth has risen from 1.8% to 2.4% for next year, with the British economy rising faster than any other major advanced economy in the world. Furthermore, it stated that a further 400,000 jobs are expected to be created in the UK between now and the end of the financial year in March 2014.
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The recruitment market has also been bolstered recently with a flurry of Christmas jobs, showing a 28% increase on national vacancy figures from this time last year. The jobs market in Scotland is particularly booming with vacancy figures back to the number recorded at the pre-recession level.
This upward trend in job creation is creating tougher competition for the highest quality staff and turning businesses towards specialist recruitment agencies, best placed to fill highly skilled vacancies.
Mark Britton, Marketing Manager for Crimson, is delighted to see the recruitment industry poised for growth in 2014 and is pleased to see the sector surviving through tough economic times. “This year has been a difficult one for every business, but as our survey shows the recruitment industry has come out of 2013 fighting and ready to make 2014 their year of growth.
“Our statistics also show that the UK business scene is continuing to thrive in tough times. Businesses are still starting up, growing, expanding and hiring more staff and the recruitment sector is benefitting from this upward trend. With so many businesses in our recruitment network celebrating a good year for business, we are excited to be working with them to help them enjoy an even better year in 2014.”
