At the start of the year (can you believe that was already 6 months ago??) we all looked at this year, wondering what it might hold. Will COVID finally become a painful memory? Will the conflict in Ukraine develop into something even more uncomfortable? What will happen to interest rates? Will we be deep in recession?
Fast forward to now, and all of the issues above have had a significant impact on the UK economy, including the manufacturing and engineering sector. However, there are some promising signs that a sustained recovery may already be underway.
Using our own experience and the messages we are receiving from the market, industry confidence levels are rising. Companies are going ahead with the vacancies that they were reluctant to backfill last year, as well as increasing headcount for markets that have seen growth since 2020. Really good candidates are still thin on the ground, with many choosing to sit tight for a little longer, but we have filled some really difficult roles over the past 6 months with passive candidates that would have been stellar finds before the world turned itself upside down, let alone in the current climate.
While it’s too soon to light the cigar Will Smith Style and confidently say whether we’re fully out of the woods yet, there are certainly positive signs of recovery within the manufacturing and engineering sector.
By staying vigilant and taking proactive steps towards growth and innovation, and of course, succession planning to manage the flex, businesses can position themselves for success as we move to the back end of 2023 and into 2024. The key is to remain confident in the industry’s ability to recover and come out stronger than before.
The best results come with advance planning, and this is where we love to work hand in hand with our clients. If you would like to have a no obligation chat about your current hiring challenges, to see why we are so different from many others, and to apply a consultative and engineered approach to your succession planning, get in touch.
