Over half (56%) of financial services CEOs are planning to take on extra staff in this year, new research suggests.
According to a PwC report, Remoulding your workforce for a new marketplace, these CEOs are looking to increase their headcount by at least 5%.
Hiring trends vary from sector to sector within financial services, however. The insurance industry is planning to expand its workforce by more than five% – compared to around 30% among banks and asset managers. The regulatory burden on banks means that compliance officers are in particular demand.
The report also found that just 10% of millennials (those born in the 1980s and 1990s) who work in the financial services industry are planning to stay in their current role for the long term.
Nearly 60% of CEOs see the limited availability of skills as impeding growth, yet barely a quarter of respondents have initiated changes to their talent strategy, and just 35% believe their HR function is prepared to make necessary changes.
Kevin Burrowes, PwC’s UK financial services leader, said: “Optimism has increased as the recovery in the UK picks up pace and confidence in the financial services sector rises. However, the kind of talent organisations need, where they recruit them from and how they manage them will be different from the last surge in recruitment and growth.”
He added: “The influence of increased financial services regulation is also becoming clearer in hiring decisions, and we are seeing companies ramp up employment of compliance officers at a rate we have not seen before.”
Sally Percy is editor of The Treasurer