News

Australia on the crest of a wave

A significant part of Orcid’s growth in recent years has been in international recruitment, particularly into Western Europe and the Asia Pacific region and dealing with a number of major consumer businesses.

What are the trends we are finding and where are the opportunities for other businesses?

Having returned from a recent business trip to Melbourne and Sydney, it was surprising just how much affection remains for the country’s UK and wider European roots while very much facing towards Asia for business.

The stalwart mining/mining services and financial services sectors have ensured Australia sailed through the GFC (Global Financial Crisis, as they call it) relatively unscathed.  Now they are focussing on their links into China and the broader Asian markets, and the country, or should I say, the cities in Australia feel much more ‘Asian’ than they did 25 years ago.  While some sectors are clearly being affected by the global slowdown, the fundamentals appear reasonably strong and Australia seems well positioned to take full advantage of its relationships with the Asian markets particularly.

In recruitment terms, Europeans have an advantage with our consumer/FMCG expertise and exposure to highly competitive and sophisticated retail markets.  In the Australian grocery sector for example, there is an effective duopoly with two major supermarket chains, Coles and Woolworths maintaining around an 80% market share.  These big players have attracted high profile individuals from the major UK supermarket chains in recent years.  Now it is their suppliers recruiting from Europe to help them adapt to the various category management and customer account management principles that are being adopted.

In our experience, the most sought after candidates are generally Australian nationals or those with existing working visas who are looking to return from Europe.   However, there is a significant appetite to fund UK nationals – particularly with strong leadership and strategic credentials in the FMCG space. We see this as a continuing trend, and expect to see many more ‘Brits’ take the opportunity to live and work in what is a truly remarkable country.

While the world maybe in a state of flux, certain things don’t change about Australians. They are still reassuringly direct and tend to call a spade a spade.  In Sydney I walked past a street near Darling Harbour that was effectively a cul-de-sac. The name of the street?  “No Through Road” of course.  And driving over a small bridge under which flowed what looked like a bottomless river I spotted the name “Deep Creek”.   Well what else would you call it!

 For any advice or further information on our international experience, please get in contact with Patrick Gatenby -  01244 571845

Posted 20.01.2012