Recruitment Trend Analysis. The second quarter of 2022 confirms our analysis of companies’ hiring outlook in a volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VICA) environment. Reassuring news. The French Bank economic survey of 8,500 business leaders reinforces this outlook. Activity, after having progressed in April and May, resisted in June. The French Bank confirms that French GDP is expected to increase by 2.3% for the year. Businesses’ hiring forecasts therefore remain at a high overall level compared to previous years. However, it is worth noting that large companies’ hiring intentions were down at the end of June. Recruitment trends: a dynamic market in France and abroad A large majority of our clients continue to invest in the recruitment of talented men and women. They hope to improve the performance of their organizations in a complex environment and to meet new human, societal and technological challenges. Recruitment missions in France and internationally (Europe, the United Kingdom and North America) have therefore been supported by business development, operations management and experts in all sectors of activity. Interim management also performed well, focusing on operational projects and interim management. Several priorities will maintain the momentum of the recruitment and talent management market, both nationally and internationally, in the second half of the year: Retention of the best performing managers, training in leadership and new managerial practices, recruitment of new leaders and experts, development of young talent and reinforcement of operational teams through the provision of experienced interim managers. Increasing recruitment difficulties in companies In the spring of 2021, the French Bank survey identified only 37% of managers facing this problem. In June 2022, the highest level ever was recorded with an increase of 21 points. The companies surveyed are 58% concerned. While all sectors of activity are affected, recruitment difficulties are increasing more in the Industry, Construction and Consulting sectors. The second half of the year will be rich in information on the evolution of the dynamics of the employment market. The latter is likely to be impacted in particular by high salary expectations, higher turnover than in previous years, sectors with a high level of shortage with poor adaptability of supply and demand, and the impact of the “Papy Boomers”. Companies’ expectations in this new context Executives express the following priorities in the management of their organizations in the current environment: Talent management, a major challenge in a tight market. The creation of CSR positions, a commitment that contributes fully to the value of their company. The desire to provide the company with the best skills in each field in France and abroad. Continuous improvement of the collective performance of its teams and the efficiency of its organization. The pursuit of digital transformation with the right expertise. The added value of an Executive Search firm such as FITCH BENNETT Partners and its international network comes into its own here. It enables us to advise and support companies in meeting these key challenges in the fields of recruitment and talent management.
Month: July 2022
From overbooked CEO to slow leadership
From the overwhelmed CEO to Slow Leadership, the way to handle situations from a crisis environment. Fitch Bennett Partners, a partner of companies in the field of research and coaching of their employees, has been looking into the concept of Slow Leadership by meeting Murielle Machiels, an overbooked ex-CEO who is now a Slow Leadership practitioner and trainer. When she was appointed CEO of a media company, she knew that the company was losing momentum, due to a rapid digitalization of the world and the anxiousness of her shareholders who wanted to sell quickly at an acceptable price. Murielle Machiels’ first reaction was quite classic, even if demanding: create a digital strategy, adapt the organization chart, hunt for costs and imagine the launch of new products, all at a frantic pace that she imposed on herself by dragging her teams along for the ride. The result? Growth in turnover, but also low cost reduction, increased absenteeism and the appearance of burn-outs. She herself felt a lot of pain in her body, exhausted by the energy required. New practices in the service of Slow Management… Failure was not a solution, she had been hired to succeed. So Murielle decided to take another route, that of Slow Leadership. She followed ontological coaching courses (brain, emotion and body) and other courses. She applied herself to follow these new practices, then to motivate her teams to follow them. With success, on the one hand, margins increased, but on the other hand, absenteeism and burn-outs dropped significantly. Fitch Bennett Partners, whose logo includes the words “Happy People, Happy Company”, was interested in understanding more… and Murielle explained: the method consists in slowing down, organizing regular breaks to manage the mental state before each action, being creative before being operational, managing one’s energy and fears, letting go in order to be able to concentrate, trusting rather than controlling, empowering rather than taking charge and creating an environment where everyone can flourish. Too good to be true? Murielle left the company after the sale to launch her training project (QiLeader.com). More than 1,000 executives have taken this training at the request of companies, some of which are also clients of Fitch Bennett Partners. This practice helps attract the best candidates. Jean-Paul Bissen Managing Partner Benelux
