MAURICE Carr, Recruitment Partner, BDO Simpson Xavier continues our expert comment series and looks at how employers and employees are responding to the current market in a positive way
“One of the key themes to emerge from all quarters in the past few weeks is the focus on innovation so many new idea generation forums and seminars taking place.
Creativity in all aspects of business and management is now required. As a nation we have been to the fore in our entrepreneurial way of doing things. One avenue worth exploring for businesses in the idea of tapping into the wealth of experience now available as a direct consequence of the lay off of highly skilled professionals across all functions. SME’s now have a great opportunity to tap into skill levels and resources that were not readily available. A company could now conceivably bring in a number part time experts to work for a few days a week for a set period of time or deliver on pre-identified projects.
Panels of highly skilled individuals are now easily accessed enabling companies to look at different ways of doing businesses because of the highly talented resources that are now accessible for short term assignments. BDO Recruitment has seen a significant increase in employment activity in the areas of Part-time Management appointments in key areas of Sales and Marketing, Finance HR and General Management. Examples are of a company employing 50 people who has recruited a Financial Controller for 8 to 10 days per month to provide the financial expertise to help them through current market difficulties. This person was previously head of finance for a large quoted company and is bringing a significant boost to the company at a salary which is within their budget due to the flexible time arrangements. The performance measures for these roles are based on delivering results rather than hours worked. The ideas that may have been suggested months ago could now have a champion to execute them if companies considered tapping into the panels of highly talented and motivated individuals now available to work with them and bring their own expertise to bear on the way SME’s do business.
The good news is that there is a wealth of talent which is available to meet the needs of our economy and the employers who are responding to this are not only benefiting in the short-term but are creating a platform for their companies which will sustain them well into the future. This situation has come about through the major economic downturn but the outcome has the potential to have a significant positive impact on the employment market for both employers and employees. “
