The Northern Powerhouse: Attracting talent

The UK Government’s investment into the Northern Powerhouse has been a welcome opportunity to grow for local businesses and residents in the North. The strategy aims to improve transport infrastructure, raise education and skills levels, ensure that the North is seen as a strong economic region to start and grow a business, and is recognised as an opportunity for trade and investment to boost the economy. 

But what will this mean for the property and construction industry, and how can businesses be sure they are attracting top talent?

The devolution of power back to Northern cities and creation of the Northern Powerhouse and has seen the Government commit to investing £13b in transport to help better connect the Northern towns and cities to help create jobs. Ultimately, this will create faster travel times and boost the appeal of living and working in the North.

The Government’s strategy, which focuses on improving the quality of life for those living in the North, also highlights that “investing in the region’s residential and cultural assets will help to attract and retain the best talent to ensure long-term sustainable increases in productivity and growth.”

This continued investment into the North’s economy will fuel the need and demand for property developments and housing, essentially leading to an increase in the need for property and construction professionals. This opportunity, however, does not come without its challenges.

As the demand for these professionals increases, the fight for top talent will intensify and the candidate shortage may pose a problem for the continued development of the region. Although contrary to popular belief, it does not seem that finding trades/labour workers is going to be the most challenging workforce to source. In fact, it will be more on the ‘pre-construction’ phase. These are professionals experienced in development, design and delivery. These individuals come at an absolute premium simply because there are not enough of them, perhaps a hangover from a recession period when construction was low on the agenda.

The development of main cities in the north from a commercial, residential and transport perspective is allowing candidates from further afield to access jobs in the area. The maturity of large business’ around employee engagement, promoting flexible working, increasing the use of technology in day-to-day life, allowing candidates to work from numerous geographical locations is again another key area in which these cities will attract the highest calibre talent.

In order to attract top talent in the Northern market, and in fact, UK wide it is important to promote a culture that supports work-life balance. While this can be supported by a flexible or dynamic working programme in the office, which is one benefit that many millennial candidates are seeking, Northern cities hold a massive advantage over the southern counterparts when it comes to work-life balance. This is simply due to the fact that the cost of living is much lower and in most cases, professionals will have a much shorter commute to work. These factors alone can significantly improve an employee’s work-life balance. 

As the development of cities such as Manchester, Leeds and Liverpool into socially vibrant and diverse cities continues, we should expect to see more professionals choosing to head North and stay in surrounding cities and regions.

When looking to hire, it is important to approach your recruitment process with flexibility. The talent available in the market is in high demand, so this will require hiring managers and/or their partnering recruiters need to be quite innovative in how they attract talent. This can only be done through a truly consultative service.

At Page Personnel, our teams of consultants are specialists in their industry sector and the region they recruit within. We offer commercial value to employers through advising on market trends and utilising our national database of talented professionals. We are best placed to offer advice on what to expect in your recruitment process and help to set your expectations in order to attract the sought-after talent. 

If you would like to discuss how we can help you find the right talent to grow your business, why not get in touch with your local Page Personnel office today? Alternatively, submit a job spec and one of our specialist consultants will call you.

Manager, Public Sector & Not For Profit

Page Personnel Finance

T: +441618290354