There’s an interesting article in The Register today about the difficulties tech companies are facing in recruiting staff. According to an IDG survey, 60% of senior managers in tech companies are struggling to attract staff, and The Register comes up with some interesting ideas about why this is so – you can read them here.

Are they right? Their first suggestion is pay – and to pay more. It’s an obvious answer, and it does have its merits, but unless you have particularly deep pockets, this is not necessarily the answer. There are, of course, some companies that pay below the market rate, but in our experience, most companies now are aware of people’s salary expectations are prepared to meet them.

It’s their second and third points that are particularly worth reading though – there’s increasingly a demand by companies to hire fully formed staff who have every area of the job spec honed to perfection – and a corresponding reluctance to train both existing employees and new hires on new technology. Hiring for aptitude would not only make finding talent easier, but would also diversify the workplace. Companies also restrict their hiring pool by discounting potential employees that don’t fit into a preconceived vision of what their company should look like – being more open would undoubtedly benefit them through an increase in experience, and different viewpoints.

If you want help with widening your talent pools, call Alto on 01242 223946.

Free Webinar on Quantum Computing

Our clients Oxford Instruments are participating in a webinar hosted by the Institute of Physics on the latest advances in quantum computing capabilities on 19^th November at 2.30pm.

For more information, and to sign up, click here:

http://connect.physicsworld.com/computing-and-software/latest-advances-in-quantum-computing-capabilities/2003633.article#webinar

Yesterday saw the launch of Octopus Ventures $140m fund for later-stage companies in Europe. Opportunities for start-ups to gain large-scale funding in Europe has been limited to this point, and no doubt many start-ups will see this as a growing sign of investors’ confidence in the ability of the UK and Europe to produce world-class ventures.

http://www.octopusinvestments.com/octopus-raises-140m-fund/

The Scottish Referendum: The effect on UK jobs

As with most communities in the UK this week, our attention has been focused on tomorrow’s independence referendum in Scotland. Whilst we are broadly in favour of a no vote, like Matthew Parris writing in The Spectator, our attitude towards Scotland has been soured somewhat by the tone of the debates, and the hectoring of the Yes Campaign in its incessant drive to batter the English. Our principal concern has been the effect on jobs.

Our analysis is that a yes vote will increase public sector jobs, but see a reduction in private sector jobs. Many functions of state undertaken in Westminster (and elsewhere in England) will have to be duplicated; an army of consultants will need to be employed to separate the technical functions of every government department. But private sector jobs are likely to fall, particularly in the banking and finance sector on which the Scottish economy is heavily dependent. RBS and Lloyds banks have already made public parts of their contingency plans to move their headquarters in the event of a yes vote, and it seems inevitable that further rationalisation of jobs would disproportionately hit an area no longer their home. Ironically, independence would likely only increase London’s dominance, and not reduce it as sought by the SNP.

The Currency Problem

The SNP’s failure to adequately address the issue of currency is perhaps of greatest concern. Whilst it is just conceivable that Cameron, Miliband et al may withdraw their assertion that they will not allow a currency union, it is highly unlikely that they will. The currency options for an independent Scotland, therefore, are quite unpalatable, and will result in Scotland having a much weaker currency – and, if they join the Euro, much more vulnerable to wider market problems. This is likely to reduce inward investment, and inhibit job creation.

You’ve had a successful interview, and have been made an offer. Congratulations! Now you need to decide whether to accept or decline that offer.

Sometimes the choice is easy – you loved the company’s ethos, got on well with the hiring manager, and the job is going where you want – or, occasionally, exactly the opposite – and you can give your answer immediately. But sometimes, you’re not sure. What should you do?

Communication is key – you may want to keep your head down for a few days to decide, but if you stay off the radar, the company may think that you aren’t interested at all, and rescind the offer. Talk with your recruiter and hiring manager, and explain your concerns – often you will find that these can be resolved.

If you’re not sure, the temptation is often to delay a decision – but how long can you delay? There’s no hard and fast answer, but the longer you leave it, the more likely you are to find that your offer has been withdrawn (we recommend a maximum of two days). Some might find this unreasonable – but look at it from the perspective of the hiring manager – they want someone committed to their role, and if you leave it too long, they are likely to think that you are taking the job as a last resort, and not because you really want the position. We recently had a situation where a candidate was allowed two weeks to consider the offer – but then had to re-interview for the role because of the delay. The client then withdrew the offer, to the chagrin of the candidate.

How can this be avoided? Don’t just go for every role that comes your way. Make sure you do your homework before the interview, so that when you do go to interview, you have considered everything about the role – the commute, the pay, the work you would be doing, the industry sector – and are prepared to accept or negotiate on an offer.

As of last night, the e-mail problems that we were having with users of Symantec.Cloud services have been resolved, and we are receiving all inbound mail again.

Thank you for your patience over the last few days.

The UK has been ranked first of all EU countries for the number of new businesses created. Good access to funding, both through banks and venture capital, have been a prime enabler for start-ups, but relatively low levels of tax and red tape have also been highly beneficial.

City A.M. Article

Nasdaq OMX has announced that its progress in providing derivatives clearing services to its members has been “strong”, according to EVP Transaction Services Nordics, Hans-Ole Jochumsen. Clearing of IRS products through Nasdaq OMX in Europe has grown substantially, with the company now being the second largest IRS clearing house in Europe.

CFTC Dodd-Frank rules coming into force in October are expected to have a dramatic impact on the market share of US banks in the swaps market as non-US clients are planning to shift significant areas of business to entities not affected by Dodd-Frank in Europe. This move is due to the expense of compliance – particularly the expense of putting all OTC derivatives through a central clearing house. UK and Eurozone based branches of US banks will also be required to comply with the US rules, unless there is a comparable home country compliance regime – European rules are not yet finalised, meaning costly dual regime compliance.

The selling point of 4G has long been the fast download speeds customer can achieve, with watching videos, listening to music and smooth Skype calls all touted as reasons to upgrade. A surprising trend, then, has been the massive growth in data uploads experienced on EE’s 4G network since launch. It seems that users are making much greater use than expected of the faster speeds to upload data, with data uploaded at a higher rate than it is downloaded at major events. What impact this will have on infrastructure planning is yet to be seen.