Reply to: State of the Market

[rocktronAMP]

Consider the recent announcement by Amazon that all workers are to return to the office full time. Is it really because they think that improves productivity? Studies have shown that flexible working is good for productivity. Its really about shedding some of the work force without having to resort to explicit layoffs - some people will not like it and will voluntarily leave. Those that stay, will be the ones most committed.

Indeed. Amazon employees, some of them, will quit or find new roles. But will they find it easy to jump ship, especially in a heavyly landen restrictive permanent job market? AFAIR Amazon UK rarely hires contractors, but they may take on niche consultants.

This is unsurprising to me as Apple has / had a return-to-the-office full time policy for awhie. I agree it is a power move, because they think that the "great resignation" (USA phenomenon 2021/2022) is well and truly over. Will other lesser famed businesses follow suit? Well probably not., because a good CEO would hold off any such plans for a 1 or 2 years. "Hey Amazon Person. Come and work for us! We are flexible." There will be Hot Talent, but whether these lesser business can cope with the wage demands of the exiters will be another matter.

[dsc]

[...]Its really about shedding some of the work force without having to resort to explicit layoffs - some people will not like it and will voluntarily leave. Those that stay, will be the ones most committed.[...]

Anyone with half a brain would carry on coming to the office considering how bad the job market is.

[agentzero]

SNIP

The FT did an interesting analysis comparing several economies and what effect excluding the richest region would have on GDP per capita. The comparatively outsized dominance of London was startling. The rest of the UK has an average GDP per capita lower than almost every single US state, just on a par with Mississippi. Which illustrates why so much of the UK’s economic prospects seem bleak.

The article you mention may contain a different methodology. In the way you have described small areas cannot be compared for GDP per capita for many reasons. I assume you haven't explained the methodology correctly.

[Ketto]

If anyone is interested. Sounds legit…

[willendure]

Is recruiting part of your contract? If not, you are SO FAR inside IR35…

Chill, I just passed on a few contacts as a friendly favour.

[willendure]

Fully agreed, cost (or cutting it I should say) is what seems to matter most currently.

Consider the recent announcement by Amazon that all workers are to return to the office full time. Is it really because they think that improves productivity? Studies have shown that flexible working is good for productivity. Its really about shedding some of the work force without having to resort to explicit layoffs - some people will not like it and will voluntarily leave. Those that stay, will be the ones most committed.

We are not quite at the point of a full blown recession with layoffs all over the place, although their certainly have been some big ones. Just kind of on the edge of it.

Spending falls, margins are squeezed, layoffs start, repeat. Its easy to see how a negative spiral can develop and we are certainly in one now.

[edison]

Fully agreed, cost (or cutting it I should say) is what seems to matter most currently.

Cost cutting seems to have been the modus operandi for most UK firms for such a long time now. Levels of private and public investment have trailed our peers for decades and productivity growth has flatlined since the late 2000s. Worse still, the recovery since then has been slower than our competitors.

Add in the complications from Brexit and the oversupply of cheaper IT labour, and I really can't see how prospects for IT professionals are going to recover much for the foreseeable future.

If there’s just one thing I really hope the new government can do is to stimulate increased business investment. Without it we’re going to be screwed.

The FT did an interesting analysis comparing several economies and what effect excluding the richest region would have on GDP per capita. The comparatively outsized dominance of London was startling. The rest of the UK has an average GDP per capita lower than almost every single US state, just on a par with Mississippi. Which illustrates why so much of the UK’s economic prospects seem bleak.

[dsc]

This does not make good reading. Roles are down 25% year on year and have been declining for the last 26 months. https://www.cityam.com/the-jobs-mark...ons-wont-help/

"...show vacancies decreasing for the 26^th consecutive month."

[Bluenose]

This does not make good reading. Roles are down 25% year on year and have been declining for the last 26 months. https://www.cityam.com/the-jobs-mark...ons-wont-help/

Monzo/Revolut eating everyone's lunch I suspect

[SchumiStars]

Looks like we are not alone.

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/...?h=0&t=2094680

[dsc]

Speaking from recent personal experience, in both private and public sectors, the fact that someone is actually good at what they do and delivering value to the client doesn't count for much anymore.

Fully agreed, cost (or cutting it I should say) is what seems to matter most currently.

[ladymuck]

Or changed to match someone internal / known to the team?

That is also very possible.

[fatJock]

Another PM here - largely Infrastructure related but also new facility setup and customer projects in the Logistics space. Just completing a datacentre migration for the current client with some mop up expected beyond my current end date of 04th Oct. Extension going through but other pipeline work I had being passed over to Perm PMs so the writing is on the wall here. Second stint there in 7 years though.

Might just be my network or particular industry area but things seem fairly buoyant and I've had a few asks about when next available. Good luck to all looking for work though as I see other more generalist contractor friends on the bench - one of which coming up for nine months now.

[davetza]

This does not make good reading. Roles are down 25% year on year and have been declining for the last 26 months. https://www.cityam.com/the-jobs-mark...ons-wont-help/

[SussexSeagull]

General update from my client (mid sized insurance firm) - brutal round of cuts happening among permies, mostly aimed at upper/middle management. The person I was reporting to was fired, the person they reported to resigned a few weeks later, everyone's looking over their shoulder. The last scrum master

It looks like they're trying to do away with the whole delivery centre model and seat most delivery teams, PMs and BAs within BAU, but that's just guesswork.

I don't think it's limited to IT/tech departments, I can see quite a few new holes appear in the Office365 org chart that weren't there before.

As a PM, in theory, I should think this bodes well for the possibility of a contract extension for me, but who knows...

Speaking from recent personal experience, in both private and public sectors, the fact that someone is actually good at what they do and delivering value to the client doesn't count for much anymore.