MD of a recruitment company, Bridget Jones unpacks the outcome of the last two years.
Few people can deny feeling a great sense of panic when the lockdown was announced just over two years ago. I quickly looked at my diverse clientele and tried to anticipate how they would react. The first cost-saving exercise of many big firms was a national freeze on all external employment. I panicked – and saw absolutely no future for our business. It did not make sense that clients would need to recruit and boost their personnel for quite some time.
To my complete surprise, the last 24 months in recruitment has not only been exciting, but my team has been inundated with work. While this period has felt chaotic, it has been by far the most fascinating time in my 30 years in the recruitment industry.
Based on our order intake, placements made together with information drawn from candidates and client companies, I have noticed a few new trends.
- There appear to be limited positions available for administrators who fall in the R10 000 to R15 000 a month salary bracket. It is my opinion that this group has experienced the greatest number of retrenchments, which, I believe, has transpired due to companies adopting additional technology during Covid. Other administrative functions have been absorbed by retained staff as companies seek leaner administrative processes.
- There has been interest in employing contract workers with capacity (i.e. business analysts, marketing experts, system managers and the like) to see a company through a short-term project.
- The demand for personnel with a solid skill set who can hit the ground running, adding value from the get-go, has increased exponentially.
- Covid has forced internal restructure and sadly this has seen companies retiring long-term senior personnel in their early 60s. Companies are either choosing not to replace these personnel or hiring individuals with slightly less experience at a lower cost. We have worked on more CEO positions in the last 12 months than in the last five years.
- Companies with head offices outside of South Africa have been increasing their headcount in our regions. Most of these are specialist positions that pay handsomely and allow remote work.
I am not ashamed of not being able to see a light on the horizon in March 2020. That initial fear has kept me alert. While some industries have been sorely impacted by the happenings, there are those that have done exceptionally well. Having established ourselves in the market as generalist recruiters have saved us.
Regardless, business in SA remains challenging. Apart from our well-known internal issues, the significant increase of raw materials has put extreme pressure on working capital and there remains uncertainty surrounding the impact of the Russian-Ukraine war. What I do know is that many business leaders know how to deal with trying circumstances. Their resilience and vision is inspirational and ultimately creates livelihoods.