How should paraplanners present themselves in the post pandemic employment market? Lewis Byford, director of AntonyGeorge recruitment puts forward some recommendations.
I don’t feel I need to tell you about the demand there is for paraplanners in today’s market, how the job has changed and the view of working from home in recent years. But what I can tell you is the change in how we educate advice firms on what the paraplanners of today want.
When we present paraplanners to our advice firms our view has always been to be completely open and transparent. There is no point in wasting your time, our time or employers’ time if what the paraplanner wants is never going to be on offer. Particularly around working from home and flexible working.
Financial advisory firms are slowly coming to terms with what working from home looks like. Many are stuck in their ways, of “we have always done it this way” however some are realising that maybe that approach is not working in today’s market…
We have personally seen first-hand, clients that want a paraplanner in the office 5 days a week are getting 80/90% fewer interviews than those offering hybrid or flexible working. Staggering statistics!
AJ Bell issued some data pre-Xmas from a survey they conducted with 2,000 UK adults. The date showed:
- 55% of people currently working from home said their employer was looking to make hybrid working a permanent option in 2022
- 45% of people working from home said they routinely worked more hours
- 22% of people working from home fear it reduces their chances of promotion
- 51% of parents working at least partly from home had been able to stop paying for some or all childcare.
The facts from AJ Bell, represent a very good indication of what we have seen with our clients. The majority of firms we work with operate a hybrid model and we have found that most paraplanners are working longer hours when they do work from home. Clocking in before the children are up or even when they go to bed.
When we speak to paraplanners about flexible working we also say the following:
First, please be accommodating, most clients will offer some degree of flexibility. The majority will want you in the office more regularly at the start because they want you to:
- Build rapport with the team
- Understand how the business operates
- Get imbedded in the process.
Secondly, be clear what your ideal office/home working balance looks like to you, so you can state it clearly to us and the interviewer. Be clear what number of days you would like to work from home. Even the hours. Would you like a get in early leave early working day?
Employers are becoming more flexible, and some operate in core hour windows. For example, you must be working between 10.00 & 15.00, and make the time up outside of those hours.
Employers need to not only focus on their business growth plans but to understand the importance of a work life balance for their staff. because when it is done right, the team is happy and productivity for the business excels. A win-win in my book.
As specialist recruiters we continue to educate businesses about what paraplanners are saying and wanting; we are fighting your corner.
If you have any questions around this, want some advice from me personally or you are looking to recruit then I would love to hear from you on [email protected] or head over to our website: www.antonygeorge.com
