Growth in Business Confidence Not Reflected in Hiring

Media release

8 July 2011

Growth in Business Confidence Not Reflected in Hiring

The latest research by leading finance and accounting recruiter, Robert Half, shows confidence is returning to the New Zealand business market. Despite the positive outlook, hiring predictions for the second half of 2011 remain modest.

Nine out of 10 hiring managers surveyed were confident in their company's growth prospects over the next 12 months but this confidence is not mirrored in the corresponding hiring predictions.

Managers reported just a net four per cent rise in plans to increase the number of full time, permanent staff in finance, accounting and banking roles in the second half of 2011.

Hiring managers who are intending to hire are doing so to help ease the workload of existing staff members (51%), while 41 per cent of new hires will involve tackling a new project or initiative and 32% will help grow the business.

Sixty-six per cent of employees reported their workload had increased in the last 12 months, with 27 per cent of those saying their workload had increased 'significantly'. This suggests that people are already overstretched and may not be able to cope with increasing workloads that will eventuate if companies do not grow staff in line with the confidence level.

Robert Half New Zealand general manager, Megan Alexander, says she has seen a real turnaround in the past six months in the junior to middle management levels, to a market that gives employees more power and opportunity as the recession has eased and the job market has become more fluid. However the very small increase in plans to hire staff over the coming six months is concerning.

"Confidence is up and businesses now need to think about how they are going to provide the necessary manpower to manage and sustain future growth," says Alexander. "This comes on top of the need to ease pressure on existing workloads."

"Over-stretched staff threatens retention as people start feeling undervalued and look to opportunities that provide better work/life balance, further impacting the potential growth of an organisation. Businesses could miss out on crucial opportunities for growth if they do not have the right resources in place. The current modest intent to hire will not sustain growth expectations.

"What's more, our prior research and experience shows in a candidate short market, it can take up to three months to find the right person for a role," adds Alexander. "As employee optimism grows, so does the choosiness and expectation of employees when considering a new role.

"We are already experiencing a lack of skilled business and accounting professionals in the market at certain levels and the reality is employers could face a difficult and lengthy process to find the right people to support their business expansion, whether that's a temporary or permanent position. Hiring managers should factor this into their recruitment plans."

New hires in the second half of 2011 will comprise 62 per cent entry or junior level, 51 per cent middle management and three per cent at director level.

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