Swimming, skiing and a sledgehammer...
If you read my previous blog, you will know I was looking forward to March. My son loved swimming, so much so, lessons begin next month. The Grand Prix season is now underway and promises to be an un-missable year and skiing was, as always, a great little getaway. The snow was good, the sun was out and I managed 2 nights of après and one loooong sleep!
Now spring is definitely here (?!), I decided to set up for summer – I have dragged the garden table out the garage, given the lawnmower an oil change and fired up the bbq. I much prefer life outdoors. Having read Simon’s blog from Edinburgh and heard him enthuse about al fresco Scotland, maybe I should get myself up there?
One job since moving to our house has been to knock down a wall and remove a path in our front garden. Now me and DIY are not the best of friends, so it is a job I have swerved for a year. Over the past few weeks of staring at the wall, it did not come down, so I took charge and indulged in a long standing man fantasy – smashing up a wall with a sledge hammer. Now that was fun! Loading 3.5 tonnes of rubble onto a flat bed trailer was not, but I’m pleased to report the job is now complete, and a rustic fence stands in it’s place.
Work is going well at the moment, our City and Canary Wharf clients are hiring: there is demand into risk and regulation projects, several banks are investing in their technology again and there seems to be a spurt on for good operations resources too. Role flow is still lower than we would all like, and about 40% lower than this time last year, but the sentiment is positive and the banks’ appetite to hire in London seems to be gathering momentum.
In Q1, contractors saw lots of contracts ending without renewal, and a higher than usual level of contracts ending prematurely, but month on month that seems to be dropping and clients are keeping their contractors longer. Our permanent businesses are seeing the seasonal spring bounce and role flow across their desks is the strongest it has been for some time.
Now it might just be because it’s Thursday afternoon, but the one indicator I look to as a reflection of our market is the noise level and faces of the consultants in our office, and right now there are plenty of smiles and positive vibes, so here’s to a good recruitment market for Q2, and my fence not falling down!