Recruitment Roundup 20

In today’s Recruitment Roundup, we present survey insights and key insights around the job market for management consultants. Approximately 40% of the UK’s management consultants are looking for new jobs, with over a third having been made redundant during the Covid-19 pandemic. Therefore, it raises the question…why are management consultants leaving their roles and what do they look for going forward?

Survey Insights & Key Findings
To assess the current state of the market in the UK consulting sector, Prism Executive Recruitment surveyed over 3,500 experienced management consultants using a brief questionnaire. Most respondents had over 10 years of experience, and 80% had been permanently employed as consultants within the past five years.

The ‘Management Consultancy Job Search Survey 2021’ revealed that 39% of consultants are seeking new jobs. Additionally, 29% indicated that Covid-19 disruptions made them more likely to consider changing jobs. While around 50% of consultants identified as “not actively looking,” many were still open to new opportunities or occasionally applied to job ads, and only 12% were not interested in moving jobs at all.

Despite many firms reporting stable results for 2020, their profit margins don't tell the whole story. Many large consulting firms have laid off hundreds of employees to survive, with 36% of job-seeking consultants doing so involuntarily. Most of those made redundant or who left are experienced consultants. This could indicate age bias among employers and cost-cutting measures targeting higher salaries.

Drivers for New Job Openness

A recent survey revealed the top 4 reasons why passive candidates may seek a job move:

• Seeking a salary increase
• Seeking a new challenge
• Limited career prospects
• Discomfort with company culture

Younger consultants prioritised wanting to seek new challenges. Whereas, more experienced consultants prioritised a salary increase and wanting a better company culture.

What Do Consultants Look For?

In job searches, the main priorities are “job responsibilities and scope,” “base salary,” and “people/culture/employer’s values.” These priorities vary by age group. Consultants with over 20 years of experience focus on “job responsibilities and scope,” followed by “base salary/salary package,” with less emphasis on “career prospects” since they are applying for senior roles.

Surprisingly, most job seekers rate “brand,” “size of employer,” and “job security” lower in their priorities. This is positive for smaller firms, as they are now considered less risky despite the economic uncertainty of the pandemic.

How Do Consultants Find a New Job?

Networking: The Key Route
Networking is the primary job search method, especially for experienced consultants, with 73% using it. Job sites and LinkedIn are also crucial for active seekers. We cover 4 key ways to improve your job search highlighting the impact of networking the right way on Linkedin.

Recruitment Agencies and Employer Websites

Recruitment agencies are key for many, while employer websites are less favoured due to usability issues and uncertain job postings. We have a variety of roles currently available across a wide scope of sectors - be sure to check our Jobs Page to find the right role for you!

We carried out a recent poll on our Linkedin, to find out the biggest challenge for those who are actively searching for jobs. With over 50 votes, the majority stated their biggest challenge was getting noticed by recruiters. We took this onboard reaching out to those who voted to find out their stories and challenges. We offered them our resources to help with their job search whilst showcasing our current live roles to develop their career.