Place Your Bets

Restructure and downsizing can be very debilitating for a business. Individuals, naturally concerned about their own job security, have to be focused internally while competitors are out there making headway. Over the past twelve months we have seen many of the new overseas entrants exit the market. This includes: The Hartford, Sunlife Financial of Canada and, most recently, Macquarie. We have also seen significant job losses through mergers and acquisitions. In 2009 this was Clerical Medical/Scottish Widows and in 2010/11 the sale of a large part of Axa Life to Friends Provident has resulted in further job losses. At the same time we have seen an increase in interest from the UK Banking sector. Prudential recently struck a deal with Santander and both HSBC and Barclays have also started to market products to intermediaries while RBS has been selling its structured products through SIPP Nordic. The product providers now seem to be falling into 2 camps. Those who have a Platform offering and are committed to bringing funds onto it and those who have chosen not to have a Platform offering and are selling their products on a standalone basis. Meanwhile, the IFA market is trying to position itself for RDR which looks likely to lead to further adviser segmentation.
Individuals seeking positions at present will be forgiven for feeling like they are in a casino. Which way should they place their bets? Should they place their chips with a WRAP/Platform offering or should they chose a product provider with a strong brand name and trust they will continue to be able to deliver niche products which will be attractive to IFAs and their clients? As any recruiting Manager will be aware, a good career track record without too many moves is what Companies are seeking, so joining the wrong Company can have a major knock-on effect. In some cases choosing the wrong Company has meant individuals face redundancy twice or three times running in short succession. Not surprisingly, in intermediary sales, supply of candidates exceeds demand which is allowing Companies to be more selective. At Paul Harper Search, we have seen the strength of candidate shortlists improve significantly,
offering our customers more choice of candidates who fit the job description. Likewise, many of our clients say they are inundated with CVs and phone calls from unsuitable applicants. This is where we add value and will continue to do so. By sitting in the heart of the market for the past 11 years we are well positioned to find the right candidate for the right job.
This is particularly valuable in current markets where a wrong move can be disastrous for both client and candidate.

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