The recruitment industry is seeing an even greater degree of specialisation. Agencies are restructuring and offering support to specific sectors, such as IT or Human Resources (HR). They are developing a lot of knowledge about one particular industry, as opposed to having a little knowledge of many.
In terms of HR Recruitment , there is more focus on staff development and training, and as a result, more specialist opportunities for human resources recruitment in Birmingham. A survey carried out by the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development (CIPD) revealed that following the economic uncertainty of the last few years, training budgets are once again on the rise.
The ever-changing nature of employment legislation has also prompted an increase in the number of professionals within HR who specialise in certain areas, including employment law, employee relations and benefits and compensation.
Outsourcing
Market trends typically shape opportunities for employment and, of course HR Recruitment. As the markets continue to recover, outsourcing recruitment to agencies is increasing in popularity. Organisations are recognising the many benefits of outsourcing their recruitment, as well as the more involved HR tasks. One outcome of this appears to be the rise in agency-based HR opportunities, while the numbers of in-house positions are falling.
Technology
It goes without saying that the introduction of new technology is the catalyst for some of the biggest changes in recruitment over the last two decades. HR departments are now able to spend less time focussing on the administrative aspects of the company and more on core HR and strategy processes.
The introduction of new technologies, and the accompanying research, has proved especially beneficial to the Midland recruitment industry. With new applications being developed almost daily, this trend is likely to continue. Consumer technologies, including video clips, blogs, video CVs and podcasting, are all increasing in popularity and have led to a rise in the level of technical skills required for certain positions.
Challenges of the International Arena
In order to remain competitive, UK companies are having to branch out into the global arena. HR departments now face new challenges managing people on an international level. HR professionals increasingly need to demonstrate skills such as cultural awareness and additional languages.
Changes in Demographic
Until fairly recently, Human Resource management was an industry dominated by women. While there are still many more women than men in HR roles, the numbers are beginning to change. As with many other industries, however, men still tend to occupy more senior positions.
Within the recruitment industry itself, the gender split is a little more equal. However, according to the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC), female recruiters are paid on average about 30% less than their male colleagues.
Recruitment is a fast-paced environment, driven by targets and supported by ever-changing advances in technologies. As a result, almost half of those working in the industry are under thirty.