HR Interims: Q1 – the market, the trends and the predictions

With Spring about to bloom, and we begin to think about the Easter break, Amy Smith, Head of Interim Recruitment at Macmillan Davies takes some time to reflect on some of the developments in the HR recruitment space during Q1 of 2023, as well as sharing what we are expecting to see as we head into the next quarter.

Proactive rather than reactive

So far, recruitment in 2023 has been more proactive than reactive. With the cost-of-living crisis and the squeeze on salaries and budgets alike, many clients are reviewing benefit packages and salary offerings to try and find innovative ways to support their employees.

With the new financial year of the horizon, businesses are reviewing their internal talent and skills in preparation for future projects, particularly large change and transformation projects that are adjacent to the incoming budgets. As some companies restructure internally, we predict an increase in interims being needed to promote the smooth and successful transition in internal processes and changes.

Niche skill sets are still sort after such as operational excellence, expert HRM knowledge, organisation effectiveness, international HR experience, complex & consultative ER, TUPE, and international employment law, to name a few; these hard-to-fill roles are the priority.

Interims have the ability to come in at short notice and complete a project with these high-level skills and experience learned from previous assignments. They’re able to give an outsider’s perspective or to give internal influence on the decision-making.

A seniority imbalance

The start of 2023 has highlighted an imbalance in the seniority level of the interim professionals being required by clients, with more junior-level roles being released over higher, directorate-level roles. The junior level roles have included HR Admin, HR Advisor and HRBP, over HRD and CPO level roles. We believe this is due to budget constraints leading up to the new financial year.

However, as we begin to move into the second quarter, this is starting to shift and balance back out with recent positions being released at ‘Head of’ or Consultant level.

With new budgets being set for April 1st onwards, we have seen a lot of senior personnel awaiting their end of the financial year or end of Q1 bonus' before deciding to move on. Now, this has happened, we are already starting to see these senior-level roles becoming available to fill the movers.

An interim solution

The benefits that interim hires bring continue to be attractive to clients with the cost-effectiveness of their flexibility and fresh perspectives and access to specialist skills being sort after.

The Interim Recruitment team at Macmillan Davies

At Macmillan Davies we recognise that interim recruitment is not purely a temporary solution. That is why we bring the same professionalism and passion to sourcing interim HR candidates as we do permanent ones. Whether we are sourcing people to manage change or drive an organisation through a period of transition, we apply a consistently professional approach.

Our in-depth understanding of our clients and the HR market means we can assess candidates across a broad set of criteria; amongst other qualities, we look at depth of expertise and achievement, competencies, professional qualifications, and, crucially, company cultural fit.

Get in touch

For more information on interim opportunities for yourself or for your business please contact our interim consultants:

Amy Smith – asmith@mdhr.co.uk – 07946 173 393

Sophie Atkinson – satkinson@mdhr.co.uk – 07930 086 518