SYDNEY MARKET UPDATE - MAY 2010

DIVIDED MARKETS!

“When are things going to pick up?” This has been the question that has been fired at us by a lot of our candidates and clients as we look hopefully towards the second quarter of 2010. Recently we have seen a disparity between the fortunes of the Interior and Architectural markets. The last few months has seen an up turn in the amount of new positions listed in the Interior Design sector whilst the Architectural market has remained in a state of flux.

In terms of general recruitment trends in NSW, the market has moved away from the contract driven nature of hiring in 2009 that was forced by the, at times, desperate nature of the stimulus package. Now we are starting to see more ‘strategic’ hiring occurring with firms looking to recruit higher skill levels and particular project experience, into their offices.

This has all lead to a demand in Architecture for candidates with Healthcare and Aged Care experience, and in the Interiors sector those candidates with Commercial experience are starting to get snapped up.  Understandably companies will continue to be cautious in the recruitment of new staff as many firms are still counting the costs of redundancies throughout 2008 and 2009.

Overall the general feeling amongst our clients is positive but any recruitment that is being done is with a degree of caution.  It appears to us that a lot of the recruitment that is taking place is being done by word of mouth as clients look to either former employees or contacts from within their network circles.

Architecture:

During the last three months the Sydney Architectural Market has continued to show signs of consolidation as the financial and property markets have remained steady. This has meant that the opportunities in the market have remained with the smaller to medium sized practices who have good relationship with their clients and are wanting to bring in ‘superstars’ to help build for the future.

The larger firms in the Sydney market have, as whole, continued to struggle in the last quarter with only those that have strongholds in Healthcare showing any signs of growth. The main problem lies with the funding for the $50m + private projects that the larger firms rely upon.  There are lot’s of ‘potential’ opportunities for practices but even when these projects get the go ahead, competition is very fierce and not just from local firms.

It remains clear that government funded projects have been the main reason that has kept the larger firms from having to make further redundancies.

Smaller firms that specialise in Residential and smaller Commercial projects have on the whole remained relatively busy over the last quarter. This was reflected in the news from the Housing Industry Association that building approvals were up by 40% in NSW throughout March 2010.  However with numerous Interest Rate rises this year the expectation that approvals will start to fall as we move into the second half of 2010, has started to gain momentum.

All of the above has led to only a small number positions being available on both permanent or contract basis and a continued trend from companies to be very cautious about bringing on new staff. Those candidates with particular computer skills, especially in Revit, have remained in demand.


Interior Design:

The Interior Design market continues to be driven by a Commercial market that has remained relatively busy over the last few months. This has lead to a rise in the in the overall number of new positions listed in Interiors over the last 3 months.

There have been ongoing opportunities in the corporate fit out market for highly skilled individuals as firms, and in particular Design and Build firms, look forward the second half of 2010.  On top of this Design consultancies and Architectural firms with strong Interior Design departments, have also seen an increase in corporate work. This has meant that candidates at all levels with strong commercial fit-out experience have seen an increase in opportunities.

The Retail market has shown some pockets of sporadic growth, especially in the fast food and food court areas. 

The same opportunities, unfortunately, cannot be seen in the Hospitality and Residential Markets. These two areas of the Interior Design market have found the going very tough again, in the last quarter. The indication is that whilst some firms have remained solid in these markets the outlook for the rest of 2010 is variable.

As with Architecture, highly skilled and experienced candidates will be targeted as companies look to strategically appoint staff in order to develop their market share in the coming months.

So in essence whilst overall confidence levels are improving, the activity levels are still somewhat inconsistent and very considered as everyone works towards the future.