Businesses 'getting ready to thaw recruitment freezes'

Following the long and hard recession, it looks as though things are finally thawing out, which may mean that firms are set to put an end to their recruitment freezes.

Indeed, in what could be good news for people on the hunt for jobs in London and considering approaching a London recruitment agency, the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey for Q3 2010 has revealed that seven per cent of employers expect their workplace headcount to be set to increase.

Meanwhile, on a quarter-on-quarter basis, the report claims that hiring prospects continue to look stable, while the year-on-year outlook has improved by six percentage points.

In addition, the finance and business industries have been found to be the most positive sectors as employers predict moderate recruitment activity and forecast a net employment outlook of plus seven per cent.

Commenting on the news, Andrew Hawes, director and co-founder of Newton, said that the outlook for many businesses now is "much more about getting themselves in a really lean, good position and I think inevitably that will feed into more recruitment".

"I think a lot of these businesses are going to get themselves into a shape where they can start recruiting," he continued.

The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey follows research by the Confederation of Business Industry which revealed that with the economy on the mend again, employers have been able to abandon many of the particularly drastic measures they initiated during the recession, allowing them to begin hiring again.

Indeed, while one year ago, around two-thirds of firms had implemented a recruitment freeze, six months ago this had fallen to 37 per cent and in May the figure stood at just five per cent.

But what can graduates and jobseekers do to ensure that they are the ones to land jobs as recruitment freezes thaw?

Martin Pennington, director of the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services, recently claimed that increasingly, employers are aware that what people achieve during their degree course encompasses a far wider field than simply what they have learnt in the lecture theatre.

"It's how else you spend your time, the opportunities you take up and the skills you develop that are at least as important - arguably more important - in determining what kind of an individual you are when you leave," he added.

In order to best demonstrate what makes them right for the job - in addition to their qualifications - graduates and jobseekers could find it beneficial to obtain expert advice from a recruitment agency, where they could also pick up some CV writing skills that place them in the best position to act as the recruitment freeze melts away.

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