It’s Not All Good News
February 18, 2010 by Damian
2010 has started off with a sense of renewed confidence in the legal recruitment market. There is ‘cautious optimism’ that this year will see an increase in the amount of vacancies around which will bring a sigh of relief to numerous jobseekers who are keen (and have been for a while) to move on from their current roles.
I concur with this optimistic view of what 2010 will bring but the news that has come from the South Island this week – see link below - is a reminder that the market is by no means stable and there will continue to be some bumps along the road before we can safely say that we are ‘back to normal’ (whatever that is).
http://au.legalbusinessonline.com/news/breaking-news/40320
The message that I have taken from this unfortunate development is that we should not just have blind faith in the recovery and we must realise that any optimism for the year ahead should indeed be ‘cautious’.
An important caveat to this article is that a final decision has not been made by Anderson Lloyd so it is not certain that there will in fact be redundancies made. However, the message of caution for the rest of us still stands.
Biggest News of the Year So Far!!
February 9, 2010 by Damian
By far the biggest news story of the year so far in the legal recruitment world has just broken with the news that UK Magic Circle giant Allen & Overy is opening in Australia -
http://www.lawyersweekly.com.au/blogs/top_stories/archive/2010/02/07/allen-amp-overy-to-open-shop-in-australia.aspx.
This is a huge story. There have been murmurings for years about UK firms either setting up in Australia or merging with an established Australian firm (which recently just happened with the Norton Rose/Deacons merger) but the naysayers consistently said that the rewards would not justify the potential risk and that the referral arrangements that already exist between UK and Australian firms work perfectly well, thank you very much.
However, A&O obviously think differently and are jumping straight into the top tier in their chosen areas. This will make them an extremely attractive choice for UK lawyers wanting to spend some time in Australia as well as giving local lawyers the opportunity to get a Magic Circle law firm on their CV without even leaving the country. However, it does not take into account that a lot of people want to experience a different culture at the same time as furthering their career so it may not necessarily be the chosen route for many who may prefer to work for A&O in London, rather than A&O in Sydney or Perth. There is no doubt that they will be able to attract the very best graduate lawyers but time will tell whether they will be able to offer enough to keep the very best intermediate lawyers in Australia, rather than losing them offshore.
What this means for New Zealand law firms and New Zealand lawyers is a very interesting question. I would imagine that the lure of working for A&O in Australia would be very attractive to NZ lawyers but as is the case in London, only the very best will stand a chance of securing a role there.
Also, it does raise the question whether any international firms think that doing a similar thing in NZ would be a good idea. Obviously the quality of lawyer is good enough here but are the deals (and the fees) big enough? It would seem that because of the total lack of any speculation of this kind whatsoever that the answer to this question is ‘no’. The firms who have a referral relationship with A&O will be rubbing their hands. Other firms may be a little afraid!
Encouraging News From London
January 20, 2010 by Damian
I received an email from one of my colleagues in London this morning which should give those people thinking of going to London some hope.
The tenor of the email was that although it is still very difficult for an overseas lawyer to secure a position in London, some firms are now are starting to look at overseas lawyers again.
The catch is that, as it stands, you really need at least 3 years experience from a leading firm, have a work permit (i.e. do not need to be sponsored) and be on the ground in London for interview.
I realise that these criteria are reasonably hard to meet but for those that do meet them, it looks like there may be some opportunities for you at present. For those that don’t, I’m afraid that the best advice that I can give is to sit tight and wait for the market to develop further and take your chance later in the year.
If you would like to have a chat about this in more detail, feel free to give me a call!!
Interesting Articles For 2010
January 12, 2010 by Damian
I have come across a few articles recently that I thought that I should share.
The first three come from the ALB website and can be found by following this link -
http://www.au.legalbusinessonline.com/e-magazines/magazine.aspx?id=39186.
In this edition, there is an article about Kensington Swan’s decision to open an office in Abu Dhabi as well as an interview with the new Chairman at Simpson Grierson in which he talks about his plans for the future of that firm. Another very interesting article called ‘Southward Bound’ discusses the difficulties and benefits of North Island firms operating in the South Island.
Over at Lawyers Weekly, I found some very illuminating articles describing the year just past and the year just begun under the very dramatic headline of ’2009 - The Year That Changed The Legal Profession’ :
http://www.lawyersweekly.com.au/news/au/features/special_reports/
Another one to have a look at, also from Lawyers Weekly, again grandly titled ‘Five Tips To Get To The Top’ gives some hints about how to best position yourself when you are thinking about changing jobs. All are pretty obvious but it is worth a look, nonetheless.
The last one for the time being gives an overview of the markets across the globe and tries to predict what locations will be attractive for lawyers in 2010 -
I am not sure whether I completely agree with some of this analysis but suffice to say, there will hopefully be more activity in these areas than there was in 2009!!
To specialise or not to specialise?
December 11, 2009 by Damian
From years of experience in overseas recruitment, the main feedback that clients give me about NZ (and Australian) lawyers is that one of the main reasons that they are so employable is because of their versatility.
Due to the nature of the market down here, few practitioners are what UK lawyers would call ‘specialists’. For example, there would not be one finance lawyer in NZ who would be dedicated to only doing aviation finance. My own legal career in the UK (for what it was) was purely in tobacco litigation – I did nothing else. This degree of specialisation just does not exist in NZ firms.
Until now, allowing practitioners to specialise in London has worked. The deals are huge, sophisticated and specific so people with detailed knowledge of the subject matter are necessary. One unforeseen consequence of the GFC, if the Linklaters’ plan as laid out in The Lawyer article below works, may be that the specialist lawyer may be a thing of the past in London -
http://www.thelawyer.com/1002837.article?nl=TL-LND.
If the way of the future for London lawyers is to become generalists rather than specialists, this could have some effect on the employability of NZ lawyers in the future. If that point of difference is taken away, it will be up to NZ lawyers to come up with another selling point to differentiate themselves from the rest of the market.
Any ideas?
What’s happening in Asia?
December 3, 2009 by Damian
According to this article that I found in ALB, it looks like Asia may be the first international market to bounce back -
http://au.legalbusinessonline.com/news/analysis/analysis-good-news-for-aussie-lawyers-looking-for-taste-of-asia/38640 -
It is certainly going to be interesting to see whether the forecasts in this article are accurate. I will keep you updated.
One comment that I particularly agree with is made by the recruiter who says that at present, some employers are looking for the perfect candidate but the fact is that the perfect candidate does not exist. I think that some employers over here have fallen into this mindset and it is a difficult one to get out of. Those who are stuck in this mindset will really struggle to recruit once the market becomes candidate short again. Those who take a more pragmatic approach will find the ‘best’ candidate for the job, even though they may not be ‘perfect’.
Employers Beware – This May Be As Good As It Gets
November 27, 2009 by Damian
As I have said in other posts, 2009 has been a funny old year in many respects. One of the biggest differences from previous years is that employers now hold the upper hand in recruitment matters for the first time in a long time. Contrast this to the state of affairs a few years ago when HR people spent the majority of their time on recruitment, fending off partners who desperately needed staff but were unable to find them.
I am sure that employers are enjoying the current situation. When they need someone, they can be very confident that they will be able to find someone with relative ease. As an example, the HR Manager of a very desirable employer told me that when they put out a vacancy recently, they had 29 applicants. 18 months ago, for the same vacancy, they received 1 and that person was unsuitable!
However, I think that employers should make the most of the current situation. At present, even though more and more vacancies are coming on to the market, there are still relatively few new roles around. Coupled with this, there are some very talented people around who are looking for a change and thus, some employers are managing to secure the services of top quality candidates who they would never get in a more crowded job market.
My view is that this state of affairs is not going to last much longer. The overseas markets are starting to bounce back, salary reviews and bonuses will be negligible this year and some people will just have had enough of their current situation. The consequence of this is that regardless of whether the NZ economy improves or not, there will be a lot more movement in the market early in 2010 than there has been in all of 2009.
Employers need to be aware of this and be planning for it. Those that are will continue to attract good talent but those who are putting their head in the sand and thinking that their staff will stay relatively loyal next year and if they need someone, they will be able to easily find them, are going to be in for a shock.
As an aside, some employers seem to have become complacent in their recruitment and are taking far too long to shortlist, interview and make decisions. In a different market, it will not be possible to take so long. If they do, the best candidates will have already gone to someone who has a more streamlined and candidate focussed approach.
So for any employers out there reading this, my view is that if you are thinking about taking someone on, do it now before it is too late. If you wait too long, you may find that the problems that you faced 18-24 months ago in attracting good staff will be back on your doorstep again. Now may be as good as it is going to get.
It’s A Funny Old Time
November 2, 2009 by Damian
It’s a funny old time in the world of recruitment at the moment. There is definitely more of a sense of optimism around and for the first time in quite a while, there have even been a number of options for junior lawyers. I have recently met quite a few younger lawyers who, after sticking things out for the annus horribilus that has been 2009, have said ‘stuff this, I’m off to London’.
Whether it is the onset of summer, the prospect of a new year which will hopefully bring a new beginning or just people being fed up with being pessimistic about things, it seems that the tide has turned and to borrow a phrase from one of Ireland’s most over-rated performers D:REAM – “things can only get better.”
So with this in mind, I opened up the latest edition of (the very good) NZ Lawyer magazine to see who was advertising, only to find a total of 3 job advertisements in the whole edition. Back in the heady days of 2006 and 2007, there probably would have been 20-30 and it seemed as if the whole publication was one big recruitment fest with some articles thrown in to break up the ads.
Historically, Seek would have 300-400 legal jobs. As I sit here now, it has 223 legal jobs in NZ, quite a number of which are different agencies advertising the same job. (Yes, we do do that!)
So where is the truth? Is it getting better or worse?
My opinion, which I’ve outlined in earlier posts, is that the worst is behind us. I believe that people will start moving jobs, if only because they are sick, sore and tired of what they are currently doing. This will create some fluidity in the market which will result in the current stagnant market unraveling somewhat. Hopefully in conjunction with this, the law firms will feel confident enough to start making some positive hiring decisions and will be considering how they should be staffing up in anticipation of the wave of people who will leave these shores when the overseas markets pick up.
However, it will be a slow process. Employers will (and should) exercise caution for the foreseeable future and it will take a long time until the NZ Lawyer carries 20/30 job ads and Seek carries 400 jobs. The reality of the situation is that it will be the candidates from the larger firms or those with the broadest experience or best academic records who will secure the first number of jobs that come on to the market. It is only when these people are comfortably ensconced in new roles, should the the rest of the profession be confident of finding something new.
The first 3 months of 2010 will probably still be pretty quiet. The second quarter, I feel, will set the tone for the rest of the year, one way or the other.
It is a funny old time indeed!
“No Employment Market Recovery For Lawyers Until 2010″
September 23, 2009 by Damian
Have a look at this link to a very interesting article on the issue of how long it might take for the legal recuitment market to return to ‘normal’ again – http://au.legalbusinessonline.com/news/analysis/no-employment-market-recovery-for-lawyers-until-2010/36880
To be honest, the tenor of the article makes a lot of sense to me and if it is correct, then we are looking at around March/April next year before things can confidently be seen to be ‘normal’.
Much as I would like to disagree with this assessment, I think that it is probably reasonably close to the mark. Although there is an increasing amount of optimism around and a few more vacancies coming on, the market is nowhere near showing any real fluidity or new activity. To add into the mix, remember that we have the traditional Christmas/January slowdown to come as well which always puts the brakes on things.
So although the worst may be behind us, it could be another 6 months or so until we are completely out of the woods.
Rose Tinted Glasses – Don’t Make That Mistake
September 22, 2009 by Damian
It has been pretty obvious to everyone that getting a job in the last 9-12 months has been very difficult. The number of vacancies has shrunk dramatically while at the same time, the numbers and quality of applicants has increased in a similar vein. This has left some good people either out of a job or sitting very unhappily in their current one, desperately wanting to be somewhere else.
Recently, there has been a marked change in the mood around the job market and the country in general. The general consensus is that the worst is behind us and that the recovery, although it may be slow, is on its way.
I agree with this sentiment and god knows I hope that it is correct. However, I have already started to pick up a sense from people that they think that, once business confidence has been restored and the markets have stabilised, changing jobs will be as simple as sending in a CV, having a chat with a hiring manager and signing on the dotted line.
I think there is a serious case of people looking through ‘rose tinted glasses’ at the pre-credit crunch job market. I read an article in a reputable online legal magazine by a partner in a firm in Dubai who said they used to hire people purely and simply because they had the letters ‘LLB’ beside their name. Obviously he was over-simplifying things but the message that he was sending out was, in my opinion, a dangerous one.
It was not (and never will be) very easy to change jobs. Back in the ‘good old days’, I know that there were some people who secured jobs in firms who, in reality, were not strong enough for them and were completely out of their depth. However, those people were the exception, not the rule but their experience has lent creedance to the belief that changing jobs is as simple as changing one’s hairstyle.
I, like everyone else, am looking forward to a job market where people have options. A ‘normal market’ should be one where a person does not have to sit in a job that they really dislike or is unable to move locations due to a lack of suitable opportunities.
However, I think that everyone needs to get some perspective on how the market will actually look in the coming months and years. It will not be a matter of just applying for the job you want and getting it. You will still need a strong CV that showcases your skills and experience. You will still need to demonstrate that you can add significant value and that you have the potential to go far in the organisation. In other words, you will still have to work hard to get a job.
Those who are looking back through ‘rose tinted glasses’ and think that getting a job will be easy, even when the market does improve, are going to be in for a nasty surprise.