Skills shortages in Scotland

Skills Shortage is an issue at the moment within the IT recrutiment industry, especially withing London.
When it comes to innovation, businesses are well aware of the revolutionary impact that technology is having. In recent years, we’ve seen much-hyped industry concepts transform into solid use cases, which are now being developed for the needs of specific sectors.
One industry where technology is really starting to change the game is recruitment. Smart tools are emerging that are cutting the time and cost of managing operations, making key processes quicker and smarter, and generally enabling recruiters to get better at placing highly skilled candidates with the right opportunity.
Recently, we analysed some of the ways in which technology is shaping working processes for a trend report on The Future of Recruitment, and some interesting examples emerged. Three critical innovations – automation, AI and blockchain – are clearly at the front of industry discussions, and it will be interesting to see which of these capabilities are most quickly adopted by forerunners in the recruitment sector.
Here are some of the developments we can expect to see recruitment agencies embracing soon, and the transformative impact they will have on business protocol:
Automation and the end of repetitive task management
One technological development that is quite clearly transforming recruitment already is automation. For the back office in particular, tech platforms are taking over the management of essential but repetitive tasks, enabling agency staff to focus on more valuable activities.
For example, we are seeing automatic processing of essential operations such as formatting and approving timesheets and expense claims. Technology solutions are able to set regulations as to how each entry should be formatted, and automatically chase outstanding submissions, to ensure that clerical issues do not delay payment.
Automation is also transforming the way in which approved timesheet and expense claims are being converted into invoices, significantly reducing the time it takes for recruitment agencies to bill their clients.
In addition to eliminating manual errors, which result in documents and invoices being passed back and forth, the prompt nature of automated invoice filing is speeding up the payment process – giving recruitment companies quicker access to much-needed cash flow.
AI is entering the talent search
Automation provides some good examples of the way in which technology is refining back office process, but innovation is happening at the front-end of recruitment as well. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is driving significant advances in the search for untapped talent, for example, helping recruiters to pair strong candidates with the available opportunities.
AI is proving transformative because it eliminates the unconscious bias that can sometimes creep into the applicant selection progress. It searches contractor CVs by keywords related to their skills and experience, automatically generating a shortlist of the best people to put forward for each job.
There are other examples of software that uses AI to improve the search process, too – for example, analysing the wording of digital adverts to see which version generates the best response rate.
One of the most interesting aspects of AI in recruitment is its iterative learning capability. The more data AI tech processes, the better it becomes at understanding the impact of its actions – and therefore the better results it generates. This means that the more a recruitment agency uses an AI-driven solution, the more effective it will become at finding the right person for the job.
Blockchain is evolving process and payments
Another technology that must be included in the discussion of industry transformation is the blockchain. This immutable, secure way of storing data and managing transactions is impacting all sectors, and there are two significant ways in which it will evolve recruitment.
Firstly, blockchain is an important next step on the subject of data control. Recent legislation like GDPR has kick-started a conversation on who has authority over personal data, and the consensus seems to be that candidates should have more control.
By storing details securely on the blockchain, candidates will have greater power than ever when it comes to keeping hold of personal information and deciding which recruiters and potential employers they want to share it with. This will lead to recruitment agencies having more of a ‘talent agent’ role, negotiating the best deal for both clients and contractors.
Blockchain is also having a transformational impact on transaction process. The infrastructure is able to process commands in real-time, in a secure manner, which means that same-day payment will be possible for both recruitment agencies and their contractors.
The potential impact of daily payments is huge for recruiters – both in terms of access to cash and providing a competitive differentiator to attract new talent. And building processing technology on the blockchain will create a level of security and encryption that makes clients feel comfortable with this quick turnaround transaction model.
Integrating technology for future success
It’s an exciting time for recruitment technology, and the potential for agencies to run a smarter, quicker operation is huge. However, making new software work for their business will rely on recruiters choosing their technology carefully, and integrating it successfully with existing processes and systems.
Recruitment agency personnel will need to think wisely about what, how and when to introduce next-generation automation, AI and blockchain tech, so as not to overload their team with a new way of working. Methodical introduction is key to reaping maximum benefits – and the quicker their workforce can get on board with new technology, the sooner other software can be implemented to add further competitive differentiators.
This doesn’t mean that recruitment companies can afford to sit back and watch how other agencies get on with new software, however; far from it. The industry will never stand still, and recruiters need to remain open minded and embracing of the change that next generation tech can offer if they want to keep evolving. These are the tools that will transform their business, and future-proof their working models.
Ultimately, it is the businesses that can blend innovative tech and talented staff together to best effect that will thrive in today’s competitive recruitment environment. And automation, blockchain and AI will play a formative role in how that technology works.
Source: itproportal
Industry: Recruitment news

Latest Jobs
-
- Contact 12 month- Security Operations- Crowdstrike Falcon Insight EDR / Analyst.
- United Kingdom
- Dependent on experience
-
Security Operations engineer / Analyst with Crowdstrike Falcon Insight EDR experience for a 12 month contract. Experienced Contractor with Crowdstrike Falcon Insight: Endpoint detection and Response (EDR) experience needed - 12 month rolling project. Implementation, configuration and Analyst experience needed with Crowdstrike Falcon Insight: (EDR) Migration project- relocating capability internationally. technically implementing, configuration of that that migration and then transition to BAU role monitoring. DCL Search exclusive associate Project.
-
- SailPoint Consultant
- London
- Upto £75,000 plus benefits
-
SailPoint Consultant is needed for an expanding Financial Service business, this is an exciting time to join the Business as they are in the Process of deploying both IAM and PAM solutions and this consultant will form a key part of the IAM team Location can be flexible but would require the individual to come into the London office a couple of times a month for team meetings and face to face project reviews Duties include · Engage in the Identity & Access Management project to deliver SailPoint IdentityNow and Privileged Access Management · On-board applications and users into IAM tools and customise or configure integrations as required · Regularly review, secure and recertify privileged roles in applications, databases and operating systems · Implement least privilege, just-in-time access, password rotation and vaulting wherever possible · Migrate application authentication to Single Sign-On through the use of SAML and OAuth · Implement and enforce the use of MFA where possible, focusing on critical applications and risky sign-ins · Provide technical support to Centrify and SailPoint users Key experience required: Previous experience with SailPoint, including integrating and deploying into a business, onboarding users and applications, supporting users and performing manual administration tasks. Experience with SAML and OAuth to migrate applications to Single Sign-on. If you are interested in hearing more please reach out to me for more information
-
- Centrify Consultant
- London
- Upto £75,000 plus benefits
-
A Privileged Access Management Consultant is needed for an expanding Financial Service business, this is an exciting time to join the Business as they are in the Process of deploying a Centrify PAM solution,, this consultant will form a key part of the team Location can be flexible but would require the individual to come into the London office a couple of times a month for team meetings and face to face project reviews Duties include · On-board applications and users into PAM tools and customise or configure integrations as required · Regularly review, secure and recertify privileged roles in applications, databases and operating systems · Implement least privilege, just-in-time access, password rotation and vaulting wherever possible · Migrate application authentication to Single Sign-On through the use of SAML and OAuth · Implement and enforce the use of MFA where possible, focusing on critical applications and risky sign-ins · Provide technical support to Centrify users You would also gain expsoure with the IAM toolset as part of an Identity Access deployment. Key experience required: Previous experience with a PAM tool (Centrify would be an added bonus but not essential) including integrating and deploying into a business, onboarding users and applications, supporting users and performing manual administration tasks. Experience with SAML and OAuth to migrate applications to Single Sign-on. If you are interested in hearing more please reach out to me for more information
-
- SOC team lead- Deputy SOC manager - Managed Security Services, Bradford. Exclusive
- Bradford
- £70,000 +
-
SOC team lead- Deputy SOC Manager - Managed Cyber Security Services, Bradford. Exclusive Identifier project. Technical team lead needed to join a Managed Cyber Security Services business. The role will be a hands on lead role and technical escalation point for the team. You will also be responsible for leading, mentoring, growing and developing the team. You will be the deputy SOC manager and be involved in the strategic growth of the capability. A managed security services background is essential, specifically within a managed security operations capability. Current hands on support experience across Firewall, SIEM, Incident Response is essential.