| Risk Management |
Dec 2007 |
Jun 2008 |
Dec 2008 |
Jun 2009 |
Dec 2009 |
| New vacancies |
127 |
77 |
53 |
56 |
102 |
| Closing vacancies |
77 |
72 |
37 |
39 |
56 |
| Candidates registering |
249 |
241 |
257 |
320 |
331 |
|
Defensive registrations |
8% |
17% |
25% |
37% |
19% |
| Overall salary increase |
21% |
16% |
15% |
7% |
9% |
Risk management is a discipline that is substantially concentrated in the financial services industry and within that industry, the majority of its practitioners work in banking. Whilst banking went wrong pretty much everywhere, it did so most spectacularly in the City, which had come to be seen as a permanent source of high value jobs and tax revenue. When the crash came, the UK was always going to be badly affected and given the unprecedented contraction in the economy during the first six months of 2009, this turned out to be the case. The raw statistics from our market analysis confirm that it was during this period that the employment market was worst hit. Vacancy generation collapsed and defensive registrations increased, as both actual redundancies and the perceived threat of redundancies rose to unprecedented levels. However, in common with other areas of corporate governance, the recruitment market started to gain traction again during the third quarter of 2009. The banks were no longer going to imminently collapse and many, having undergone reorganisations and mergers, had skill gaps that needed to be addressed. By the end of a highly unusual year, some semblance of normality had returned to the recruitment market.
Vacancies
The number of new vacancies doubled from 56 in the first six months of 2009 up to a more healthy 102 in the second. Whilst the closing number of vacancies was only 56 we are able to take a positive view on this. The majority of vacancies in risk management are now being filled rather than just nominally existing. Interviews and selection processes are resulting in offers of employment. The increase in vacancies was at least partially the result of a build up in demand caused by an extended period when many banks instituted blanket recruitment freezes. The natural wastage of staff that occurs in all departments with or without a recession resulted in a sudden uptick in vacancies once external recruitment was sanctioned. Demand was fragmented and has been noticeably stronger in areas such as insurance and broker dealers. Whilst some banks, especially those that have received governmental support, appear to have now ramped up their recruitment others remain absent from the recruitment market. We anticipate their return to the recruitment market during the course of 2010.
Candidate Registrations
Candidate registrations reached a record high during 2009, as did defensive registrations during the first half of the year. Defensive registrations are now falling. Many risk managers are entering the recruitment market for the more prosaic reason of career development. However, the flow of candidates into the recruitment market usually falls in the final quarter, as bank workers do not wish to miss bonus payments. In the final quarter of 2009 candidates continued to move into the recruitment market unfettered by the prospect of missing a bonus.
Salaries
In the second half of the year average salary increases achieved by moving job marginally rose. There is obvious resistance to offering high salaries. 9% is is an average which hides examples where risk managers with otherwise scarce skills achieved salary increases that were substantially higher. There are also still a number of redundant risk managers who will accept a lower salary. The percentage is indicative of an environment where risk managers are more focused on job security. |
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