Recession Creates Demand for New Class of Employee: Generation R

• 68% of City employers recognise Generation R as emerging labour market force
• Multiple job offers & buy backs return to City after 2 year absence

After Generation X and Y, the latest buzzword to hit UK labour markets is set to be Generation R. A term coined to describe those professionals who were retained during the recession, escaped redundancy, worked in far leaner teams and thus progressed faster than usual as they took on the work of more senior ex-colleagues.

According to research across 571 professional bankers, lawyers and accountants in London, 70% stepped up to the more technically demanding responsibilities that redundant colleagues left behind and 81% gained more experience and a wider skill set during the recession than at any time in the boom years. Now the recession has eased, 73% believe they are performing at a level above their current job title - and want recognition and reward for their achievements.

The Generation R trend has been identified by Joslin Rowe, the UK financial services recruitment arm of  the world's second largest HR & Recruitment services group - Randstad. Joslin Rowe Managing Director, Tara Ricks, says:

"Filled with confidence as to their own abilities and what they can offer, Generation R has high expectations as to what their next move should be. Some initial research we've conducted across our banking recruitment desks shows that many assistant vice president (AVP) level candidates feel they operated at a junior vice president (VP) level during the recession and therefore will only move on to a competitor, or stay at their current firm, in return for a VP title. Generation R candidates are also now far more attracted to interim/change manager roles as opposed to the more usual permanent progression opportunities. 90% of those professionals we polled said they want to pursue a career with an element of change, project management or restructuring - a reflection of the skills they have harnessed over this turbulent period."

City employers are also fast becoming aware of the Generation R phenomenon. Of the 163 surveyed, 70% agree that the employees they retained in the recession are more proficient and commercially aware thanks to their experiences over the last 18 months. 59% acknowledge they have discovered future 'stars', who weren't apparent before the recession forced employers to give smaller teams increased responsibilities. Over a third of organisations (37%) also stated they feel pressure to progress their existing staff to the next level (title wise) faster than would usually be the case, because of their recent track record.

Interestingly, 53% of hiring managers admitted they have a preference at CV stage towards candidates who were retained during the recession as opposed to those who were made redundant. Tara Ricks believes this has more to do with the high demand for Generation R CVs than any negative reflection on candidates who were made redundant:

"It's not that loosing your job in the recession is seen as a stigma rather that being retained during the worst economic downturn in modern history carries so much kudos. Employers only have to look internally at the people they retained to  know they possess a unique set of skills, so it's only natural to want to entice the same Generation R population from their competitors. Competition is slowly but surely increasing. We're already seeing multiple job offers or buy back scenarios for those professionals most in demand - something we haven't witnessed since 2007.  In fact 68% of employers we surveyed  believe we will return to something akin to the war for talent - almost a form of Guerrilla warfare - as companies start to focus all  their efforts on attracting and retaining the very best Generation R employees."

ENDS