From economic and geopolitical pressures to shifting legal landscapes, global recruiters are anticipating new headwinds and uncertainty as we head into 2024. At the same time, the war for talent means that international hiring is essential for global organisations looking for growth and expansion in 2024- and beyond.
As with all things recruitment, the market outlook for international recruitment shifts from sector to sector. Let’s take the hospitality sector industry. It will be irretrievably hit by the government’s recent decision to increase the minimum salary required for a skilled worker visa in a bid to slash migration targets. At the same time, the tech industry – always reliant on highly skilled candidates – remains confident when it comes to experienced hires, however the increase in the minimum salary threshold means that accessing younger talent is going to be difficult going forward.
Regardless of industry, however, it’s a tough market, as the costs of recruiting continue to rise. As an example, a five-year Skilled Worker visa has increased from c£9,500 to c£11,900 in a little over three months. Yet in a country like the UK, which is increasingly poor at developing and growing vocational skills, most sectors will struggle with a huge talent gap, making international hiring their best solution to ensure a competitive and diverse talent pipeline.
Global hiring landscape
For recruitment agencies hiring global talent, the landscape, while uncertain, also presents a range of opportunities to position your international expertise and value-add to clients. There are several trends shaping the market right now:
- The rise of the digital nomad – Post-Covid the trend of the digital nomad, location-independent talent, using technology to enable their profession, continues to rise. This will give more flexibility for recruiters and open the talent pool.
- Climate urgency – The climate agenda is going to massively drive recruitment patterns over the next few years. This goes beyond paying lip service to minimising air travel and carbon footprints to transparency demanded in ESG reporting within organisations. At the same time, it will open a whole new category for candidates with climate experience.
- Changing patterns in the global workforce – A few factors are at play here, as the global mobile workforce matures. Much of this is rooted in geopolitical elements, with politics (let’s say, hypothetically, Trump America) gradually giving people the desire to choose where they want to live. Elsewhere, events such as the war in the Ukraine has flooded the market with candidates looking to leave both the Ukraine and Russia.
- Remote working here to stay – Despite RTO strategies being put into play in 2023, the rise of remote and hybrid working has made it easier for companies to attract and accommodate talent regardless of geography, particularly when it comes to more specialised skills outside of the local talent pool. Recruitment agencies with networks and presence in emerging talent hubs such as Poland, parts of Latin America and India, can play to their strengths this year.
- The long-tail of Brexit – The true impact of the UK leaving the EU sits deep in the fissures of our economy, our competitiveness, and our talent pool. Europe now has a single fair immigration system that caters for everyone regardless of where you’re from and ensuring a great flow of talent. Meanwhile in the UK, businesses are still navigating the aftershock, with a massive catch-up on upskilling locally as the government continues to make it harder to access global talent.
- New immigration measures – Last year, the Home Office announced its immigration targets, with measures to reduce net migration by 300k a year. Some exceptions have been made, for example the care sector which is overwhelmingly dependent on international employees. And despite these moves – and a potential dip in net migration in 2024 – we now live in a globally mobile economy, with organisations and their people wired and open to working internationally. I believe this essentially will prevail in the future.
Hiring into the UK internationally
So where does this leave global recruitment agencies supporting clients hiring into the UK?
First off, accessing talent will be straightforward enough. Despite the picture above, the UK remains an attractive place to live and work for candidates, with London frequently polling at the top of global cities. Our stable political and legal system and the accessibility of being English speaking, makes the UK super-attractive for candidates with a globally mobile outlook.
Our geography helps us too as the UK sits in the centre of the world from a time perspective. This makes relocation adjustments easier for a candidate moving from the Far East, for example, as the time difference is easier to navigate in terms of staying in touch with friends and family.
This is true at all levels, starting with graduates, often already in the UK talent pool because of our (still) globally recognised education system. And while immigration and global recruitment tends to be skewed towards the big cities, the UK is an attractive location for established employees too.
The agency view
Agencies will keep cost and complexity top of mind in 2024. Because clients, particularly those with ambitious global mobility programmes, will be focusing on finding great talent and placing the right people, considerations such as tax and payroll issues simply aren’t priorities.
Understandably, when you’re trying to encourage a candidate into a huge life decision like taking an out-of-country role, factors such as logistics and relocation packages take priority. The legal part – visas, tax arrangements and so on – are often an afterthought.
My take-away is always start the visa conversation as soon as you can in the hiring process. Where required, this also means ensuring your client has a sponsor license in place before they need it, ideally at offer stage. Last minute complications can ultimately leave your candidate, client and agency exposed to a lot of risk, not least missing out on great talent.
As a final thought, when it comes to the UK’s immigration system it’s always important to remember that consistent change is very much the norm. Since 2008 there have been at least six fundamental course corrections from the Home Office, quite often in response to the political mood music at the time. Considering that we have a General Election coming up later this year, expect more change to come. For global recruitment agencies, adapting to change is par for the course. Staying ahead of incoming changes, adapting to curveballs, and responding in a way that best serves your clients will keep you agile, relevant and competitive.
