Sourcing genuine insight for our clients and candidates

Sourcing genuine insight for our clients and candidates.

It's an exciting and challenging time to be assessing the recruitment landscape across creative, digital, media and tech. The workplace has travelled a decade forward in just over a year, and many are thriving on the wave of digitisation.

However, salary benchmarks offer little insight into the state of the industry without context and are not enough for our clients to assess how to attract the best talent, and for the best talent to know what they’re worth. With 2020 bringing new cultural contexts and regulatory upheaval, as we slowly return to some form of normality in 2021, we all need the ability to look forward to future hires as well as react to what is happening with our teams in the here and now and resource our immediate needs.

Our first annual Creativity Counts report looks to help our clients, employees and freelance workers realise a future-facing talent strategy. We asked our network across creative industries to share their opinions on the current state of the marketplace and their thoughts on the future. We then complemented this with insights from a wide range of sources, spanning surveys with and comments from our clients and candidates at the end of 2020; annual, cross-industry data and insider insights.

We surveyed over 400 candidates on their current salaries, salary expectations, job benefits and role satisfaction. We also spoke with clients and candidates regarding the upcoming legislative changes for off payroll workers through IR35, due to come into force in April 2021.

What emerges is a picture of candidates taking control of their needs. In line with adapting working practices and evolving roles, hiring companies and agencies need a clear view of today’s challenges and opportunities and to anticipate more that they may encounter as markets continue to change at incredible speed.

We found that, while culture and mental wellbeing have been increasing in profile over the last few years, the pandemic has accelerated their importance, bringing much more into consideration as to how to attract and retain talent and shape teams.

The same goes for adapting and embracing technology to connect and collaborate. Clients are responding to the increasing need to look after the mental health of their people, but, from the initial shocks and scares the industry experienced at the start of the pandemic, there is light at the end of the tunnel for those proactively navigating the road ahead. Those that take the initiative, with a robust strategy, adapting to multiple regulatory and situational changes, while offering an inclusive, supportive environment will thrive.

We hope this report provides you with the insights and tools to build both businesses and careers from firm foundations. We are here to provide you with more support as you need.

Download our 2021 Creativity Counts report now