Half of Midlands firms look to recruit staff

ALMOST half of businesses (49%) in the Midlands plan to increase their workforce over the next 12 months, according to new research by Yorkshire Bank.

And more than a third of companies in the region (37%) are confident their business will grow in the next 12 months, while 36% believe their business will continue to operate at current levels.

The survey also found more than half (52%) of business in the region intend to recruit skilled staff, while over a quarter of Midlands businesses (26.4%) are looking to recruit manual workers.

Despite improving confidence levels, however, 23% of businesses still expect to see a reduction in business in the next 12 months while 22% of businesses in the Midlands expect to reduce their staffing levels over this period.

The research also found that businesses recognise the importance of investing in their existing workforce with 44% identifying staff retention and recruitment as their key priority over the next year with training (34%) following closely.

Stephen Cronin, managing partner at Yorkshire Bank’s Financial Solutions Centre in Birmingham, said: “These results are encouraging and suggest that a growing number of businesses are starting to look to the future with more confidence and are looking to build the framework they need to develop their operations.

“It continues to be a challenging time for businesses and many will have had to make tough decisions to protect their business, however, few will have lost sight of the fact that their staff are their most important asset. By investing in their workforce when the time is right, businesses are helping to pave the way for growth and future success.

“The research appears to indicate that recruitment and training are beginning to re-emerge as key priorities for UK businesses as they look to the future and plan if, and how, they will take advantage of any emerging opportunities.”

The bank’s research also found that the sales, media and marketing sector is leading the recruitment drive with the majority of businesses in this sector looking to take on more staff (66%). IT and telecoms as well as architecture, engineering and building are also sectors that are leading the way with 65% and 63% of companies in these sectors, respectively, looking to take on more staff.