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January 17, 2025
Finding the right C-suite executives can make or break your business. These individuals are typically the most difficult to find, as there are plenty of people who think they’re ready for the role, and very few who are actually suited to it.
If you’re on the lookout for your next C-suite executive, you might be curious to know how current trends, challenges and opportunities might affect you in 2025 and beyond. Most people are aware of the downturn in hiring in recent months which is expected to continue into the year.
But does this downturn also impact top tier executives? Or will there always be strong demand for individuals that can drive forward innovation and growth?
In this article, we’re looking at the current challenges facing the hiring sector in the UK and how you can turn challenges into opportunities. With the right approach, you can use difficult conditions to bolster your hiring efforts.
Global events, trade wars on the horizon, a struggling economy and changes to National Insurance contributions are all adding up to a headache for the labour sector. Hiring is slowing down, as organisations take a cautious approach to the next 12 months. In general, most companies are looking for some signs of confidence before they let down their guard.
But does this trend impact executive recruitment? There is typically lower turnover in the C suite, so these roles are advertised less frequently. When you are looking for a C suite executive, it’s often a sign that you’re planning to make big moves.
So while the rest of the hiring sector might be grinding to a halt and taking a cautious approach, this might not be the case for C suite hiring. In fact, organisations might be using the tough conditions and fear of instability to head hunt talent from other companies.
It’s also a time to think strategically, and a new hire in the C suite could be just the thing an organisation needs to overcome the challenges ahead. This is a time to pay close attention to big moves in your sector, as it could have wide-reaching implications.
Some companies hunker down during tough economic times and prefer to project an image of stability in the C suite. Big moves might impact confidence, so they adopt a survive rather than a thrive mentality. Advertising for a top level executive could therefore trigger talk in your industry.
There are some pretty significant challenges facing the UK economy at present.
Since Brexit, the UK has become increasingly isolated from the rest of the world economically. While many organisations have adapted to these challenges, some are still feeling the pinch.
Hiring is one area where you might struggle. Finding the right person for a top tier executive role becomes much more difficult when you have to limit your recruitment pool or else face significant financial barriers to bringing in an overseas worker.
Head hunting from other organisations was once the norm, but this could become more difficult when tough economic conditions are widespread. Workers will value stability over short-term gain. While you might be able to offer more in the way of financial incentive, you are also asking the person to leave a stable role for the unknown. The more risk averse individuals might require more than just a healthy pay bump to convince them to make the jump.
The advent of AI and automation is also forcing companies to change the way they fundamentally operate. It is forcing innovation at an alarming pace, and this innovation is making its way into the recruitment process. This is all happening alongside an increase in demand for DEI hiring practices. This could prove to be counterproductive for DEI hiring goals if AI is able to move forward unchecked. We could also see more grievances from prospective employees over the way AI has been applied to their applications.
So much seems to be up in the air at the moment that it can be difficult to make decisions with confidence. This is a time when having a level headed C suite will serve you well. The team needs to be united in the goal of surviving while also looking for ways to thrive. It requires tenacity and innovation to ensure that companies are able to ride waves of uncertainty while turning tough times into prosperity.
While there may be lots of challenges to overcome, the most successful organisations will know how to look at these challenges and turn them into opportunities. By deciding that you won’t be held back by these limitations, you can take strides ahead of your competition.
Hiring from a smaller recruitment pool simply means that you need to get more creative with your recruitment marketing. This all starts with how you present your business and advertise roles. You need to get clear about what you have to offer, and not just in terms of financial packages.
Individuals want to know where you’ve been and where you’re going. They want to know about your company values and mission so that they can make a decision about whether your organisation is a good bet for the long term.
Creating a careers section of your website will help to highlight your unique offering and make it easier for individuals to see if your values align with their own. This could become a driving force for recruitment that encourages individuals to reach out to you, even when you don’t have any vacancies listed.
This is not a time to become complacent. It’s vital to keep an eye on your sector so you can stay abreast of any new developments. Look for signs of growth from established players in your sector while also keeping an eye on newcomers. Startups may be keen to leverage their agile position to make gains in your sector, while also capitalising on the novel factor.
It’s also a good idea to look for signs that other companies might be struggling. Streamlining their workforce or scaling back operations could indicate that they are rearranging the deck chairs. When this happens, there may be an opportunity to head hunt their top talent. If you put the systems in place to attract talent to your company, you might even find that they reach out to you directly.
Another way to make recruitment in a tough economy work for you is to review your processes. If you often find that you have to start from scratch because your first choice has accepted a role elsewhere and your second choice doesn’t want to feel like the second choice, there is a good chance your recruitment process is to blame.
Take an active role in reviewing your recruitment procedures and look for ways you can streamline without losing quality. It’s not about rushing important decisions, it’s about having the confidence in your processes that you can move forward without delays.
Recruiting for the C suite can be daunting. It’s a high profile position that could cause shockwaves in your sector. It’s not a process you ever want to rush, as high turnover in the C suite could raise more eyebrows and damage confidence. But it’s also a process that can and should be subject to increased efficiency.
This is one area where AI and automation could help to streamline things. While you could take a staunch view that AI needs to be kept out of your business, this is likely to backfire as your competitors march ahead and deliver innovation with the help of AI. Instead, look for ways you can use it to enhance the role of human workers. Let your teams suggest ways that AI could help them to work smarter, not harder.
If one thing is certain, it’s that recruitment is a sector that never sits still for long. What is impacting the market now might be a distant concern by the summer, overshadowed by some new and unexpected challenge.
While you could take the pessimistic approach and choose to see everything as a hurdle designed to slow you down, you could also see these challenges as an opportunity for growth, reflection and development.
Conditions will never be perfect and there will always be challenges to face. Like a shark, companies must keep moving in order to survive. Standing still isn’t an option, so it’s important to rise to the challenges today so that you’re in a better position to rise to the challenges of tomorrow.
The rise of things like AI might seem like an existential threat, but we can also choose to see this as an opportunity for development and to see new ways of working. Remember that innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.
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