Professional Services: Human Resources - Press Releases

PR - Challenges C-Suite Executives Are Facing in 2022

Logo2022 already presents some key challenges for executives, which is why C-Suite recruitment research is so vital - the right people at leadership level will make all the difference to business outcomes this year. Talent acquisition and retention challenges were identified as some of the most significant areas of focus by almost half of C-Suite executive respondents to one recent survey.

Strong Commodities Exports Support 858,000 US Jobs

LogoA report published in April of this year by the U.S.-China Business Council indicates that all 50 US states exported goods to China last year - and that these exports supported 858,000 US jobs. In fact, exports from America to China spiked last year, increasing by 21% which meant they reached a record high of $149 billion. Many of the rural states in the US were the ones that benefitted the most, especially in terms of commodities. Here, Chinese companies bought a wide range of goods, from soybeans to corn and pork. Many other sectors also benefited from the strong exports performance, including technology and pharmaceuticals. Strong goods exports were responsible for a significant level of job creation and were welcomed by many industries. However, ongoing issues with the travel and service industries meant that the export of services was not as successful. While the future of the relationship between the USA and China may not be clear, the export numbers for the past year have obviously had a big impact in the present in terms of supporting profitability and competitiveness among US businesses.

Sustainable Investment Behind the Fight for Financial Services Recruitment Talent

LogoSustainable investment is a key growth area in the financial services world and this is leading to a huge drive to secure business-critical talent. Competition for those who have the skills and experience to help build sustainable investment businesses is hot, with bidding contests becoming a reality and salaries spiraling. In fact, for top talent, financial rewards are increasing by around 50%. ESG talent are being identified as 'the stars of asset management' right now and this is making it challenging for even some of the biggest institutions to recruit the best people. Aligning investment with social benefits and climate goals is not new - it has had a momentum that has been building for some time - but the widespread commitment to it is. Assets in sustainable funds grew 53% year-on-year to $2.74tn in 2021. While demand for talented people to manage these assets is spiking, the talent pool remains relatively modest, which is why there are such significant opportunities for the right candidates today.

eToro Crypto Sales and Trading Platform Launches $20 Million NFT Fund

LogoNFTs are constantly generating headlines and today have become an increasingly important priority for many companies. Now, the crypto sales and trading platform eToro has announced the launch of a $20 million NFT fund that will enable it to buy more NFTs and do more for creators. Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) are digital assets that represent real world objects. That could be anything, from property to art. Focusing on NFTs in this way represents the beginning of a new strategy for eToro. Once this has become fully matured it will allow the sales and trading platform to provide a broad spectrum of services to those who are looking to invest in NFTs. From pop stars to artists, many more high-profile figures have begun to use NFTs in recent times, particularly as a way to offer a stake in their brand. Companies like eToro will play a vital role in the way that this economy expands and the opportunities that exist to participate in it.

Merck in Push to Double Medical Engineering Production in USA by 2023

LogoGardasil has proven to be in great demand - a human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine made by Merck & Co that has been a game-changer in terms of prevention. However, there have been issues with supply over the past few years, especially in 2018 and 2019. As a result, Merck has now revealed that it invested $1 billion to tackle the issues of supply when they arose - and the business is now reaping the rewards of that investment in terms of increasing market dominance. The company now plans to push its Gardasil capacity even further with a 225,000-square-foot API plant at its site in Durham, North Carolina, as well as expansion earmarked for the packaging facilities in Wilson nearby. Over the past few years Merck & Co has been steadily increasing the capability it has for producing Gardasil and expects to be able to double HPV vaccine supply by 2023.

Pharma R&D Pipeline Reached

LogoR&D pipelines and new product launches reached record levels last year with sustained growth throughout the pandemic creating very positive figures for 2021. This is according to a new report that showed 5,500 planned new clinical trials began in 2021, a 14% increase on the year before. Not only that but the total volume of products that were actively being developed last year peaked at more than 6,000. This is a huge increase on previous years - for example, it's 68% more than in 2016. The report also revealed that emerging pharma companies are increasingly having an influence over new pipelines and projects. In 2021, new companies were responsible for 65% of the molecules in the R&D pipeline. In 2016 this figure was below 50%. In fact, almost all the indicators are up when it comes to pharma R&D, which shows just how much the life sciences have expanded over the past couple of years.

Walmart Global Tech in Enterprise Solutions Expansion

LogoGlobal Tech is the fastest growing team at the retail giant Walmart, and expanding even further in 2022 thanks to a recruitment drive across the whole company. Walmart is currently hiring 5,000 new team members, with much of this human firepower to be directed at enterprise solutions expansion. Walmart has a history of working with innovative tech and has now firmly established itself as a world-class enterprise service organization providing solutions to more than 2.3 million Walmart and Sam's Club associates. The recruitment drive taking place throughout 2022 is focused on this key area of expansion at Walmart. In particular, the retailer is looking to fill positions such as data scientists, software engineers, technical program managers and project managers, as well as cyber security professionals. Walmart is expanding geographically too, and planning to make Atlanta and Toronto the new locations for its increasingly vital tech hubs, with thousands of new jobs created in each.

10 Tech Firms Qualify for NY Innovation Lab

LogoEvery year the FinTech Innovation Lab New York provides emerging companies with the opportunity to collaborate with top financial services and venture capital executives. The 12-week program was established by Accenture and the Partnership Fund for New York City and is designed specifically for early and growth-stage enterprises that would benefit from support with respect to product and business development. This year's participants come from more than 200 global applications and represent emerging tech companies focused on some of the industry's most pressing issues today. From transparency around cryptocurrencies to meeting ESG outcomes and security and compliance challenges, these up-and-coming enterprises are pioneering where some of the biggest unknowns exist. Evercity, for example, is a blockchain-based sustainability measurement and investment platform while Mark Labs helps asset managers define impact metrics. Many of the tech companies taking part in NY Innovation Lab are data-driven, including Draivn, which collects device data from fleets and converts it into real time analytics for insurers and brokers.

Eckersley O'Callaghan Launches New Façade Engineering Group

LogoThe demand for expert façade engineering advice and support is on the rise, as expectations around building envelopes become higher, whether that relates to complexity or efficiency. Eckersley O'Callaghan, a firm with a global reputation for engineering innovative glass structures, is responding to the call from clients by launching a new façade engineering group. The new group will expand on the existing reputation that the firm has built by providing support across a broad spectrum of fields, including thermal and solar analysis of façade systems and a strategic approach to maintenance and access. Structural design, as well as replacement and refurbishment and providing detailed understanding of the available materials will also be part of what the new Eckersley O'Callaghan group does. Eckersley O'Callaghan is a consultancy with extensive experience on many different large and medium-sized projects and will be able to meet specific growing needs among clients with the launch of this new team.

Quality Assurance Engineer One of the Top 5 in-Demand Jobs

LogoA recent report has identified that quality assurance engineer is now one of the top 5 in-demand jobs, alongside others such as product designer and software engineer. This comes as the market for quality assurance jobs - like many others - opens up in the wake of the pandemic to integrate much more remote work and hiring. Geographic limits have been lifted and organisations seeking to fill positions, such as quality assurance engineer, are now taking a much broader view of where staff need to be in terms of location. There are many advantages to opting for such a global perspective on hiring, including that it tends to distribute innovation faster and ensures that there are opportunities for those who don't come from markets such as the US or Europe. Thanks to the internet, labour markets are being created today without the restrictions of geography, which is positive news for both candidates and companies where quality assurance jobs are concerned.

Torc Robotics Opens European Software Development Engineering Centre in Stuttgart

LogoStuttgart is going to be the new home of a technology and software development centre where Torc Robotics is currently developing Level 4 self-driving vehicle software for heavy-duty vehicles. Torc Robotics is a subsidiary of Daimler Truck and aims to be the first organisation able to launch a scalable and profitable self-driving product. Torc has access to a wealth of trucking technical and product expertise and it's this that will provide the foundation on which the new software development and engineering centre will build when it comes to creating the new product. Stuttgart is already renowned as an area of automotive expertise and there is a growing autonomous vehicle market here. Torc Robotics' investment in the new facility will help to increase the prominence of the area in this market, as well as creating a wealth of new development engineering jobs and opportunities.

TUI AG Push to Hire 1500 Technology Recruits Across Europe

LogoRecovery is starting to evolve for major organisations across Europe, moving from survival mode into a thriving state. The latest enterprise to make this shift is the TUI Group, which is looking to recruit 1,500 new staff across Europe this year. The company has invested heavily in digitisation of its operations in recent years and this is going to be the focus of many of the new roles, which fall in areas such as technology and e-commerce. TUI said that it expects bookings to return to normal in the summer of 2022 and the recruitment drive is part of the business' plan to ensure that it can optimise on this. Some of the roles that TUI is particularly looking to fill include data engineer, software engineer and technical analysts. Flexible and hybrid working have now become commonplace, not just at TUI but on a global level, and this means that the opportunities are open to a much broader market than was previously possible.

Limmat Wealth Looks to Expand Asset Management Operations in Zurich

LogoThe banking and financial services world is going through plenty of change, not least when it comes to expanding existing operations. Earlier this year, German investment house, Feri, announced that it was continuing to focus on operations in Zurich after making an acquisition there in 2021. Feri bought Zurich-based asset manager Limmat Wealth at the beginning of last year and is now looking at expanding, and reorganising, its team in Zurich in order to be able to optimise all the potential that this acquisition has created. The current workforce in Zurich consists of around 25 employees but Feri is clearly planning to increase the number of people in its local operations in the months to come. In particular, Feri is keen to expand its capabilities for portfolio management in the city. The team in Zurich already serves 200+ private and institutional clients and this, too, is a figure likely to increase through 2022-2023.

Startups Create Biotech Recruitment Opportunities

LogoThere are many more opportunities in biotech than there have ever been today. This is, in part, thanks to the many start-ups that have begun to dominate the sector, bringing agile working models as well as innovative products and services. Newly founded companies provide options for different ways of working, and moving away from the stereotypes that might have dominated the industry in the past. For those who are willing to take on the uncertainty that can come with working for such a new company, there are options in biotech that go beyond academia or the big pharmaceutical or biotech giants. Biotech start-ups can offer a lifestyle change, and may be much more likely to hire on the basis of aptitude and enthusiasm, as opposed to a list of credentials that has been set in concrete. The number of start-ups in biotech is also rising by the week so the range of opportunities available is getting increasingly broad.

Alira Health Boosts Clinical Operations with Sourcia Acquisition

LogoGlobal healthcare advisory and technology company Alira Health has taken steps to strengthen its operations with a key acquisition. The company announced in April of this year that it had acquired Sourcia, which is a Contract Research Organization (CRO) that delivers services for Phase I to Phase IV clinical trials. Sourcia was established in 2012 and the business' focus is on medical devices, biotech and digital therapeutics. It is headquartered in Europe - The Netherlands - and has offices in many different European locations, including Munich in Germany. The integrated outsourcing model that Sourcia provides for clients to manage clinical trials with greater efficiency and trust is well established - and it is this that motivated Alira Health to make Sourcia part of its group with the acquisition. The team at Sourcia is also renowned for being innovative and very experienced and, as Sourcia is such a strong player in the European CRO market, it will give Alira Health's clinical operations a considerable boost.

BNSF Acquires Land in Planning Logistics Hub Near Phoenix

LogoA 3,508-acre piece of land in the Phoenix region is soon to be the home of a new, huge intermodal logistics hub for BNSF Railway Co. In April this year, BNSF made the winning bid for the property, which went for more than $49 million at an Arizona State Land Department auction. As well as being the winning bidder, BNSF was also the sole bidder. The property sits right next to the BNSF railway line and is viewed as a smart long-term investment for BNSF. The company intends to focus on how it can best develop the land to transform it into "an economic engine in the West Valley." Although BNSF itself did not reveal details about what it was proposing to do with the land, public records show that it is planning to create a large logistics hub. The land is currently undeveloped and being used for livestock.

Hybrid Working - a Priority for Procurement Headhunters

LogoHybrid working models have taken the world by storm ever since the start of the pandemic forced companies to reassess workforce management. Talent gaps in procurement and supply chain have made it even more important to update the way that opportunities are offered to candidates in order to be able to attract the best people. In fact, according to Gartner, being able to offer hybrid working is now vital for firms to even remain competitive. 61% of industry leaders believe that the pandemic has created permanent hybrid working models in procurement teams. Most employers forecast that the expectations that employees have when it comes to hybrid working will become more demanding and, in order to win the talent war, it will be necessary to take those expectations into account. That's why procurement headhunters today are increasingly focused on the fact that hybrid working is now a priority for enterprises globally.

Skills in Demand for Next Generation of Procurement Professionals

LogoTwo key factors are having a big influence on the nature of procurement jobs going forward: automation in the sector and the increasing prevalence of hybrid working structures. This is changing the way that those who are looking to get ahead in procurement jobs need to approach career development. For example, soft skills are becoming increasingly key in this industry, with the emphasis on being able to demonstrate empathy, an understanding of what customers want and where sector trends are going - as well as being business savvy. Being comfortable with technology is also vital and an area where most young professionals are much more at ease with. Automation is affecting many different areas of procurement jobs, from analytics and distribution to supplier payments and inventory management. It's vital for individuals working in this industry to understand how that will impact an enterprise, and their role within it.

FedEx Opens New Memphis Based Global Logistics and Supply Chain Headquarters

LogoIn April this year, FedEx Logistics announced the opening of its new premises in Memphis, which will serve as a global headquarters and a focal point for international operations. FedEx Logistics is a subsidiary of global freight transportation and logistics services provider FedEx and its services include ocean and air cargo, customs brokerage and warehousing and distribution. The premises in Memphis have gone through significant improvement since the site was identified as a potential headquarters location, with $50 million spent on a sustainable renovation. The new building is a 200,000-square-feet former guitar manufacturing facility, which is positioned opposite the FedExForum. It is designed to be a landmark site within the family of FedEx operations and signifies the ambitious plans and vision that the business has for the coming years. The past year has been kind to FedEx - in March the company reported a 10% annual increase in quarterly revenue at $23.6 billion, and a 32% annual gain.

2022 Transformation Trends for Tech Enterprises

LogoThe crisis response of the past two years may have slowed slightly in 2022. However, this is no time for organisations to stop investing in tech transformation. Implementing advantageous technology and going further in terms of strategy and vision, are vital right now. What follows are some of the key transformation trends that many tech enterprises are going to be focused on to make that happen this year. Enterprise tech is going to be playing a game of catch up with consumer tech in 2022 - out of date systems and hard-to-use software will be out this year in favour of enterprise solutions that have a more seamless feel. In addition, the time saving and process streamlining advantages of voice automation will become a clear choice for businesses, especially as many younger generations join the workforce. Plus, we are going to see increasing trends around digital twin technology and more firms embracing the true potential of the hybrid cloud.

Lidl Launches Own Shipping Line to Beat Supply Chain Congestion

LogoThe container crisis has had a huge impact on supply chains, especially for large organisations like Lidl. Now, the retailer has taken steps to help ensure the security of its future deliveries by launching its own shipping line. According to a recent report, Lidl intends to buy its own container ships so that the retailer will no longer be subject to the delays and issues that have resulted from the container crisis worldwide. Lidl is the fifth largest retailer in the world and operates hypermarkets in Europe. The German discount retailer is now in talks with shipping companies where it will be able to use its own sea freight capabilities, when it has them. Once the new operation is established for Lidl, it will be used for transportation and delivery of goods, including cargo transportation and export cargo handling services. Lidl is the latest major player to take this step to secure its supply chain but is unlikely to be the last.

German Manufacturing Sector Growth Momentum

LogoThe German manufacturing sector has had a positive start to the year, according to the latest figures. There is clearly still pressure on supply chains but many manufacturers have reported that this has eased somewhat, with new orders and an uptick in output. A softening of cost inflation to a nine-month low has also made a big difference to the way that manufacturers in Germany now feel about the coming months. Confidence among goods producers has improved in terms of the year ahead and many are now much more positive. In January of this year manufacturing PMI ticked up for the first time in six months, registering a five-month high. While supply-side progress still remains slow - and cost pressures are still a problem - there is a lot for the German manufacturing sector to be positive about when it comes to growth momentum so far this year.

Germany's Pharmaceutical Industry Sees a 9.5% Rise in IT Recruitment

LogoGermany's Pharmaceutical industry sees a 9.5% rise in IT recruitment

Germany's Financial Markets Opportunities Are Set to Grow by 33.5%

LogoOpportunities in German financial markets look set to expand considerably in the coming month and years. In particular, the embedded finance industry has some very positive forecasts, with 33.5% growth predicted in 2022. Over the period 2022 - 2029, CAGR of 20.3% is forecast with revenues to reach US$14,886.2 million by 2029. Momentum has been growing in Germany's financial sector in the past year with embedded insurance doing exceptionally well. The German market is attracting a wide range of international insurtech firms thanks to the opportunities that exist here. One major contributor to market growth in the coming years is the number of strategic partnerships that are being established between parties in the market in Germany, the goal being to launch innovative products in the coming months. Given that Germany is the largest consumer lending market in the European region the opportunities for businesses operating in this market are significant.

SysGroup Acquires Edinburgh Cyber Security Firm in £8.5 Million Deal

LogoSysGroup is a managed IT services provider based in Liverpool, UK. The company has sought to enhance not just its geographic reach in the UK, but also the range of technical services it can offer, through acquisition. In April 2022, SysGroup announced the acquisition of Truststream Security Solutions, which is an Edinburgh-based cyber security firm. The deal is thought to be worth up to £8.5 million, including initial cash consideration of £4.8 million, and will be funded by a combination of existing cash resources and a revolving credit facility. In making the acquisition, SysGroup intends to expand its existing service offering from threat analysis to incident and detection response. It will also give SysGroup considerably more reach in terms of geography, as the company to be acquired is based in Scotland. This isn't the first acquisition that the firm has made in recent times, as it has already bought independent financial services group Zeus, which is based in Manchester.