Essex Sector Skills Profile: Finance Sector Sector Definition: Finance, insurance and professional services. What is it like working in the sector? o Working long hours in a fast-paced environment; o Substantial bonuses for some finance professionals. Sales roles can also earn commission or bonuses; o Good opportunities for progression; o Further employee benefits, such as joining-up bonuses, private healthcare, pension plans and sports club membership. 1. Summary of the sector at UK, regional and local level. Nationally, over 2million people work in the finance sector, with employment particularly concentrated in London. The largest sub-sector in terms of employment covers banks and building societies, investment funds and credit companies, employing 563,000 people in 2010. The insurance, legal services, and management consultancy and company head offices sub-sectors are also significant employers. (Source: UKCES 2012). FINANCE Employs over 36,000 people locally, in over 6,000 companies Employers Include: IFDS, First Data, HSBC, Lloyds TSB, BNY Mellon, Marsh UK Ltd, Highways Insurance Co. Ltd, Equity Insurance Group, Ford Credit, Baker Tilly NATIONAL HEADLINES Employs over 2 million people with a concentration in London (including high numbers of Essex commuters) The main skills in short supply are job-specific and technical capabilities such as actuaries. Skills gaps are also particularly concentrated on sales and customer service jobs (2011) A report by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) suggests that a robust and well run financial services sector would generate a quarter of a million new jobs nationally by 2020 in providing credit and demand for sectors such as manufacturing An emerging recovery for the UK economy has generated some optimism in the sector in terms of activity through jobs and growth may be slow as banks limit their expenditure LOCAL AND REGIONAL HEADLINES Proximity to the city of London and lower rents has led to a prevalence of the finance and related sector in areas such as Chelmsford, Brentwood and Southend. Vacancies for Chartered Accountants, Business &Financial Project Management Professionals have been most dominant KEY DRIVERS FOR FUTURE EMPLOYMENT AND SKILLS Retirement and other factors are expected to lead to a net requirement of 120,000 administrative and secretarial staff nationally Achieving efficiency is leading many companies to explore IT solutions though security issues may need addressing The ‘Financial and Legal Skills Partnership’ asserts that ‘young people need to know about the many new opportunities the industry can offer’ and that ‘further education is a critical component in communicating the financial sector’s new opportunities’ KEY OPPORTUNITIES/CHALLENGES Enrolments in relevant subjects (business, administration and law, maths) appear high though significant numbers of young people will be commuting to finance jobs outside Greater Essex Only 5% of Business, Admin and Law apprenticeships are in Accountancy or Retail Financial Services (63% Business Admin) As with other sectors, finance employers assert that employability skills at school need to improve.
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Essex Sector Skills Profile: Finance Sector Sector Definition: Finance, insurance and professional services.
What is it like working in the sector? o Working long hours in a fast-paced environment; o Substantial bonuses for some finance professionals. Sales roles can also earn commission or bonuses; o Good opportunities for progression; o Further employee benefits, such as joining-up bonuses, private healthcare, pension plans and sports club
membership.
1. Summary of the sector at UK, regional and local level.
Nationally, over 2million people work in the finance sector, with employment particularly concentrated in London. The
largest sub-sector in terms of employment covers banks and building societies, investment funds and credit companies,
employing 563,000 people in 2010. The insurance, legal services, and management consultancy and company head offices
sub-sectors are also significant employers. (Source: UKCES 2012).
FINANCE
Employs over 36,000 people locally, in over 6,000 companies Employers Include: IFDS, First Data, HSBC, Lloyds TSB, BNY Mellon, Marsh UK Ltd, Highways Insurance Co. Ltd, Equity Insurance Group, Ford Credit, Baker Tilly
NATIONAL HEADLINES Employs over 2 million people with a concentration in London (including high numbers of Essex commuters)
The main skills in short supply are job-specific and technical capabilities such as actuaries. Skills gaps are also particularly concentrated on sales and customer service jobs (2011)
A report by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) suggests that a robust and well run financial services sector would generate a quarter of a million new jobs nationally by 2020 in providing credit and demand for sectors such as manufacturing
An emerging recovery for the UK economy has generated some optimism in the sector in terms of activity through jobs and growth may be slow as banks limit their expenditure
LOCAL AND REGIONAL HEADLINES Proximity to the city of London and lower rents has led to a prevalence of the finance and related sector in areas such as
Chelmsford, Brentwood and Southend.
Vacancies for Chartered Accountants, Business &Financial Project Management Professionals have been most dominant
KEY DRIVERS FOR FUTURE EMPLOYMENT AND SKILLS Retirement and other factors are expected to lead to a net requirement of 120,000 administrative and secretarial staff
nationally
Achieving efficiency is leading many companies to explore IT solutions though security issues may need addressing
The ‘Financial and Legal Skills Partnership’ asserts that ‘young people need to know about the many new opportunities the industry can offer’ and that ‘further education is a critical component in communicating the financial sector’s new opportunities’
KEY OPPORTUNITIES/CHALLENGES Enrolments in relevant subjects (business, administration and law, maths) appear high though significant numbers of
young people will be commuting to finance jobs outside Greater Essex
Only 5% of Business, Admin and Law apprenticeships are in Accountancy or Retail Financial Services (63% Business Admin)
As with other sectors, finance employers assert that employability skills at school need to improve.
In Essex, there are over 1,600 financial and business services companies (with more in related sectors as below), 42% of
which have been at their current location for 5 years or more – and have no plans to leave. The sector accounted for total
sales of over £13,575 million in 2012. There are approx. 14,500 jobs across the county, with the majority of these clustered
in Chelmsford, Colchester, Southend-on-Sea, Basildon or Brentwood. These clusters have the potential to further drive
competitiveness and innovation, and will benefit other businesses looking to locate within Essex. The sector constitutes 2%
of enterprises in the county.
Essex is an excellent logistical location. Essex’s finance and business services firms source 50% of their needs locally but
because of excellent transport connections they find it easy to secure supplies from the rest of the UK and worldwide
without difficulty. Cheaper office accommodation than in London, a prevalence of established large companies locally, good
quality staff and a pleasant environment are other key reasons why successful Finance and Business firms establish
themselves in Essex. (Source: M.E.L Research and Mazars).
Pensions and Insurance Clerks Software Professionals Brokers Customer Care Occupations
Figure 1: Course provision in FE&IPP, S6F – Enrolment Data
20 145
25 5 30
625
270
15 10 5 5 0
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200
300
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500
600
700
800
900
Accountancy BusinessAdministration
Customer Service Management Marketing andCommunications
Retail FinancialServices
Sales and Telesales
Level 4+ Level 3 Level 2
Essex-based University/College* Course
University of Essex, Colchester BSc Accounting BSc Accounting and Finance BSc Finance BSc Accounting and Management BSc Banking and Finance BSc Finance with Mandarin BSc Accounting and Mathematics BSc Accounting with Economics BSc Finance and Modern Languages BSc Business Administration BSc Management and Marketing BA Latin American Studies with Business Management BA Sociology and Management
Anglia Ruskin University, Chelmsford BSc Accounting and Finance BSc Accounting and Financial Management Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) BA Business Management BA Marketing
Figure 2: Apprenticeships – Participation Data
Figure 1 - This graph covers provision in Further Education Colleges (including Sixth Form Colleges, which are also classed as FE), School Sixth Forms and a small amount of provision (usually on Foundation Learning -Entry Level and Level 1) at Independent Private Providers. These numbers relate to enrolments – a learner will be counted more than once if they are enrolled on more than one course (such as 3 A levels). Figure 2 - This graph covers the number of sector-related apprenticeships in the county. These numbers relate to participation (learners are only counted once). Note: For a more complete list of course providers and apprenticeships available, please visit http://www.i-essex.co.uk/ and http://www.apprenticeships.org.uk/
Table 1: Higher Education provision in Essex, Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock
1.4. Establishment and workforce concentration in the sector
Map overview of the number of employees in Finance sector in each ward within Essex, Southend-on-Sea and Thurrock
Figure 3: 6,500 individual businesses in Essex, Thurrock and Southend-on-Sea
(Source: ONS 2011)
Figure 4: 36,800 employees in Essex, Thurrock and Southend-on-Sea
(Source: Nomis 2011)
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450
64: Financial service activities, exceptinsurance and pension funding
65: Insurance, reinsurance and pensionfunding, except compulsory social security
66: Activities auxiliary to financial servicesand insurance activities
69: Legal and accounting activities
70: Activities of head offices; managementconsultancy activities
0
500
1,000
1,500
2,000
2,500
3,000 64 : Financial service activities, exceptinsurance and pension funding number
65 : Insurance, reinsurance and pensionfunding, except compulsory social securitynumber
66 : Activities auxiliary to financial servicesand insurance activities number
69 : Legal and accounting activities number
70 : Activities of head offices; managementconsultancy activities number
The largest industry within the Finance sector is Activities of head offices; management consultancy activities. The highest number of individual businesses in this industry is in Chelmsford (395 in 2011), employing a total of 1,160 people. This means that the size band of these companies is generally 1-5 employees, with an average number of 2-3 people working in each business.
The highest number of employees in this industry is in Southend-on-Sea, with just over 2,740 people working in 275 companies across the district. Therefore, the size band of Southend-on-Sea companies working in Activities of head offices (management consultancy activities) is higher than in Chelmsford: 6-10 employees, with an average of 10 people working in one business.
The second largest industry is Legal and accounting activities The highest number of individual businesses in this industry is in Chelmsford (245 in 2011), employing a total of 1,460 people – also the highest number of employees within this industry. This means that the size band of these companies is generally 6-10 employees, with an average number of 6 people working in each business.
1.5. Examples of companies locally
International Financial Data Services (IFDS), Basildon (UK Headquarters), Chelmsford and Brentwood – A leading supplier of investor record keeping services and systems to UK and European financial services companies.
More than 2,600 employees at IFDS working across the four sites in Essex.
Marsh UK, Witham – provide risk and insurance products and services to international clients. The company was ranked #1 insurance broker to work for by UK graduates in 2012.
Cofunds, Chelmsford – UK’s largest independent platform for financial services.
650 permanent staff at Cofunds offices in London and Chelmsford.
First Data, Basildon – The world’s largest provider of transaction processing services has its UK headquarters in Basildon. 2000 employees at First Data in Basildon, Dublin, Nottingham and Glasgow.
Equity Insurance Group, Brentwood – The most profitable insurance company in Essex and the UK’s 6
th largest motor insurance
company, with more than 1million policy holders. 1100 employees at Equity Red Star, Brentwood.
Liverpool Victoria, Basildon and Brentwood – UK’s largest friendly society, a leading financial mutual and top income protection provider
in the advised market, insuring 1 in 10 cars in the UK and more than half a million homes. Over 5,500 employees working in 17 offices across 10 main locations around the UK.
J&M Insurance, Epping (Head Office) – Specialist taxi insurance and public and private hire insurance (minicabs, black cabs, taxi fleets,
chauffeur vehicles and minibuses).
Angel Underwriting, part of Catlin Group Ltd, Colchester - Catlin UK underwrites property and casualty insurance for UK regional clients and also provides an alternative to wholesale clients who prefer coverage written on company paper.
Guarantees and Bonds Ltd, Maldon – Specialist insurance broker providing all forms of Surety Bonds, Financial Guarantees and other
Financial Instruments for all trade sectors including Construction, Travel, Engineering and Manufacturing.
Swinton Group, Chelmsford (commercial branch opened in April 2013) – UK largest high street insurance broker with 553 commercial insurance and personal insurance outlets nationwide. Swinton Commercial has 34 commercial offices.
2. Vacancy and Salary trends 2.1. Current Salaries
Figure 5: Current salaries in Finance Sector – National level
2.2. Vacancy concentrations in Essex, Thurrock and Southend-on-Sea
Figure 6: Finance sector – Vacancies in 2012 and 2011
(Source: Nomis, based on JobCentre Plus data only)
Figure 7: Total number of online vacancies advertised in the
county between 03 April 2013 and 02 May 2013
(Source: Labour Insights, 2013)
Figure 6 shows that the overall number of vacancies across the county stayed the same from 2011 to 2012. At district level, Colchester and Chelmsford companies advertised the highest number of vacancies in 2012, while in 2011 JobCentre Plus recorded the highest number of vacancies in Colchester and Southend-on-Sea. In 2013, there have been more jobs in Business Services (average number of 750 vacancies/month) than in Financial Services (average number of 70 vacancies/month) or Banking – the industry where employers did not need workforce this year (maximum of 10 vacancies recorded by JobCentre Plus in March). Figure 7 shows that the Finance and Business sector in Essex mostly needs chartered and certified accountants, while the highest paid job in the sector nationally – brokers – appears to not be on demand in this area. 2.2.1. Hard-to-fill vacancies (trends) – include no of existing vacancies at a given time vs. sought occupations At national level, increased financial scrutiny has raised the demands for auditors, credit managers and corporate governance professionals. Regarding the insurance industry, requirement for Solvency II experience remains prevalent and there is particular demand for senior professionals such as actuarial analysts (Source: Hays, 2013 http://www.hays.co.uk/press-releases/HAYS_745238 ).
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2011 2012
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0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160
Chartered and Certified Accountants
Business and Financial Project ManagementProfessionals
Financial Managers and Directors
Sales Accountants and Business DevelopmentManagers
Financial Accounts Managers
Finance and Investment Analysts and Advisors
Management Consultants and Business Analysts
Insurance underwritters
Pensions and Insurance Clerks and Assistants
Business and Related Associate ProfessionalsN.e.c
Financial Administrative Occupations N.e.c
Bank and Post Office Clerks
Taxation Experts
Brokers
Finance Officers
JobCentre Plus Vacancy – Example 1:
Job Title: Junior Diamond Broker Location: Brentwood Salary: £30,000-£50,000 OTE Job Description: As a Diamond broker your role will involve: -Building relationships with potential investors. -Sending out literature, dealing with queries from potential investors. -Discussing investment opportunities. -Opening & Closing your own deals (where possible). -Meeting and greeting clients on a face to face basis. Skills/Qualifications: Suitable candidates for this will need to meet the following criteria: - 1 years minimum experience within an investment or sales role. -A strong, clear telephone voice. -Confidence and maturity to speak with investors from a variety of backgrounds. -Ambition and self-motivation to be successful. -The ability to work well in a fast paced, pressured environment. -The initiative to work alone but must work well as part of a team.
JobCentre Plus Vacancy – Example 2:
Job Title: Assistant Accountant Location: Colchester Salary: £22,000-£27,000 per year plus benefits including study support Job Description: A thriving business on the outskirts of Colchester is looking to recruit an Assistant Accountant to help an ever expanding business portfolio. If selected, you will be responsible for assisting with bookkeeping to trial balance, the production of management and year end processes. In return for your commitment to the role, the company offers a competitive package including study support and the opportunity to develop your accounting experience. Skills/Qualifications: Not specified. Source: https://jobsearch.direct.gov.uk
Please note that due to limited data sets, the numbers above do not include December vacancies for both years.
2.3. Skills Gaps and Shortages Nationally, the number of vacancies reported in the sector (58,800) in 2011 account for three per cent of total sector employment, just over the UK average. Of these vacancies, 20 per cent (11,700) are deemed hard-to-fill by employers and 18 per cent (10,600) are due to skills shortages. Associate professional roles are the hardest to fill, due mainly to a shortage of applicants with the right skills. The main skills in short supply are job-specific and technical capabilities such as actuaries within the insurance sub-sector. In addition, 12 per cent of sector employers report skill gaps, again in line with the average for all sectors. Skill gaps are particularly concentrated on sales and customer service jobs. (Source: UKCES, 2012) 3. Future growth 3.2. Future trends in job roles and skills demands In addition to filling new jobs nationally, the sector will have to replace people leaving their jobs because of retirement or other factors. For example, while the overall number of administrative and secretarial staff in the sector is expected to fall by 18,000 between 2010 and 2020, over the same period the sector is expected to face a requirement to recruit 138,000 administrative and secretarial staff to replace retirees, a net requirement of 120,000. (Source: UKCES, 2012) Insurance broker, Brents of Brentwood, offers commercial insurance for business and personal insurances such as households, car and travel insurance. The company plans to take on new staff into near future and expand into new markets such as veterinary insurance (Source: M.E.L Research and Mazars). 4.2. Case studies In 2012, HSBC in conjunction with the Financial Skills Partnership’s Directions Service launched a national work experience programme for 130 14-19 year old across the UK. During the placement, students complete workbooks and a business project, and receive a careers advice session. For those students who have a particularly successful placement and demonstrate genuine interest in a career at HSBC, there is the opportunity to undertake further placements in successive years.
Useful Links: Financial Skills Partnership: http://www.financialskillspartnership.org.uk/ National Apprenticeship Service (NAS): http://www.apprenticeships.org.uk/About-Us/National-Apprenticeship-Service.aspx Prospects (The Official Graduate Careers Website): http://www.prospects.ac.uk/ National Careers Service: https://nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/Pages/Home.aspx Universal Jobmatch (Jobcentre Plus job search tool): https://www.gov.uk/jobsearch
