Author: Amanda

One industry that may never become fully automated is the recruitment industry. The face to face nature of the industry helps recruiters to gain a greater understanding of a candidate’s history, their achievements, their requirements and future goals allowing for insight to what candidates desire, in turn enabling relationships to build between candidates and even clients. This relationship builds trust and loyalty which are key factor for any company in any industry to have. This is something that going fully automated can never do.

Recruitment is a people business and will remain a people business. Technology will not fully take over the industry but it will however help aid recruitment consultants with other method to contact clients and potential candidates in order to start the highly important face-to-face process.

• Permanent vacancies increase 8% year-on-year
• Finance & accounting roles up by 17%   
• Contract vacancies remain stable
• Average salaries climb, increasing by 4.6%

Professional recruitment firms now have 8% more vacancies on their books than this time last year according to new survey data from the Association of Professional Staffing Companies (APSCo). This is in line with the latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which reveals that overall employment levels increased, by 140,000 in the three months to August.

Finance & accounting sectors driving growth 

The latest data from APSCo reveals that growth in the professional recruitment market continues to climb across many of the trade association’s core sector groups. Permanent vacancies across finance & accounting, IT and media & marketing are all up year-on-year (17%, 3%, and 1% respectively). This positive sentiment is in line with recent reports that UK business investment reached 11% of GDP in the second quarter of 2015, the highest level since the end of 2000.  

The continued boom of the financial and accounting sectors is mirrored by the latest report from independent membership body TheCityUK, which found that growth in the financial services sector has pushed employment in the City to a record high, with 15,500 new jobs created in the first half of 2015.

Average salaries continue to climb

APSCo’s figures also reveal that median salaries across all professional sectors continue to climb steadily, increasing by 4.6% year-on-year. This figure is characterised by notable fluctuations in terms of sector, with banking and financial services, for example, recording uplifts of 14.7% and 10.6% respectively. This rise in remuneration within the professional arena exceeds the national increase in salaries as reported by the ONS which found that average earnings grew at an annual rate of 3% in the three months to August 2015.

Ann Swain, Chief Executive of APSCo comments:

“As we predicted, employment levels have continued to climb. In fact, the size of the UK workforce is now at an all-time record high. Cuts in corporation tax, increasing availability of low-cost finance, and cheaper energy have all contributed to this growth in confidence, and with the EY Item Club forecasting that business investment will rise by an average of 6.4% annually until 2019, this trend shows no sign of abating.”

“Market positivity is reflected in the fact that salaries continue to climb across the board, but wage growth within financial services has been truly phenomenal. Acute talent shortages are putting an upward pressure on salaries as banks struggle to bring on board the people they need to simultaneously manage growth, incoming ring-fencing rules, ever-increasing legislation, retail branch transformation and a migration to digital banking. The Big Four accounting firms are also ramping up recruitment as they concentrate business development efforts on growing areas such as cybersecurity and regulatory consulting.”

Contract vacancies remain stable

Temporary and contract vacancies remain stable across the professional staffing market with opportunities up by 1% year-on-year. Vacancies within finance and accounting were particularly strong, increasing by 21%.

Swain continues; 

“The perpetual war for talent means that contract vacancies are consistently strong, despite an increase in permanent roles. Contract vacancies within finance and accounting are particularly high as financial institutions bring on board niche-skill sets on a project basis to manage change. Monumental shifts in the UK banking sector, such as impending ring-fencing legislation, structural reorganisation and changes in customer behaviour mean that specialists are needed to ensure that the sector is future-fit. There is simply not the supply to fulfil demand.”  

Source: Apsco

(*note to colleagues – we need a snappier tag-line!):

Sub-game: Hidden throughout this article are various placeholders, #1 to #9; can you identify the correct RE term for what is being alluded to or answer the question in each case? 

Objectives

• To capture as many different requirements (known as Rekx) as possible
• To combine multiple similar Rekx into fewer, stronger and more robust versions

Step 1: Build your collection #1

An analyst could just sit back and wait for the Rekx to arrive, or stick to familiar routes and routines. But that way will only gather up a few, potentially weak specimens, the process is likely to take a lot longer and the analyst’s ability to capture Rekx will not improve. Taking on board the gamification approach, it is better to be a Rekx hunter! (Note: do we have a levelling system we could use to help with this activity? #2). The hunter approach might involve the following:

• Actively seek out the Rekx. Wander the hallways, the open office landscapes and the dark caverns of the IT department looking for them. Some will be obvious while others will only give subtle clues as to their presence and might require a closer investigation to reveal and capture; these Rekx are often overlooked and can be extremely valuable #3.
• Seek out hotspots where Rekx hunters and Rekx owners alike can congregate and share information (note: let’s call them RekxSpots). Not only can the assembled meeting be facilitated to develop a shared outlook; but the ability to capture and improve Rekx quality will also increase across the group. #4
• The more interactive and engaging the RekxSpots, then the more productive they will be; increasing engagement with Rekx owners. Hints: typically a mix of the above techniques will be most effective. Never get too focussed on one particular kind of Rekx or on only capturing the new ones; you never know when a new Rekx may wander by or valuable detail is contained in a similar Rekx from a different source.

Step 2: Improving Your Collection #5 

By following the above advice the Rekx collection will soon swell, often to breaking point. It is worthwhile occasionally taking stock and analysing the collection so far.

• You will quickly identify a number of very similar Rekx in your collection of varying levels of robustness. Don’t simply discard the lesser ones; there’s often something in them that can be incorporated into the best ones to make them even better.
• These can be combined to create Super Rekx. There are likely to be fewer of these in your collection but will be of great help when organising the collection. #6
• Look for significant gaps in the collection or the need to bolster existing Rekx through further exploration and gathering.’

Step 3: The Boss Fight stage – the final test #7
You may get to the point when you feel your collection, or a subset of it is ready for the ultimate test. At this stage you should throw your Rekx into an arena where they can be measured against challenging tests. (Note: we could call this RekxGate). How well they perform will depend on how comprehensive a collection you have built as well as how robust they are following the analysis and refinement process. We all seek validation in our day-to-day lives, and gamification should include this important step.

General hints and tips

• Participation: It's typically better to work collaboratively within teams. As well as being more productive, the more eyes you have at work the more thorough the end result. It can also be more enjoyable, especially when it comes to a gamified activity.
• Results improve through both application of better practice and through experience gained from practice. Always look for ways you can improve in the future.

Conclusion 

The underlying framework (#8) for this set of activities, the cataloguing and managing your collection of Rekx needs a cool name; how about Rekx Gathering. Makes it sound too easy? How about Rekx Cataloguing. Too boring? 

Rekx Engineering that has a nice ring to it. Anyone improved on that tagline yet?

Gotta catch ‘em all? Catchy… but have we checked this out with Legal because it sounds familiar…

Anyway, I think there’s an inherent flaw in that tagline in the context of Rekx Engineering (#9); what do you think? Could this sort of Rekx gamification catch on?

Answers to the sub-game at the bottom of this page.

Answers
#1 Elicitation; #2 The Business Analysis career path and associated certifications; #3 Tacit Requirements; #4 Workshops and focus groups; #5 Analysis; #6 High level or Epic requirements for traceability etc.; #7 Validation; #8 The RE framework; #9 You’ll never catch them all (beware analysis paralysis), but have you caught enough?

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What are the main hindrances stopping the adoption of authentication strategies, and will passwords be around for much longer?

Single-factor, password-based authentication – and even many traditional two-factor approaches – are no longer enough to secure today’s increasingly digital world.

These techniques, including username, passwords and security question credentials do not sufficiently protect organisations and the critical data they hold, as seen in the spate of recent breaches such as Yahoo!

According to the 2016 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report, 63% of the attacks it studied leveraged weak, default or stolen credentials at some point in the attack.

This indicates that, in order to combat the rising tide of credential abuse, organisations must implement stronger forms of authentication.

Despite this, users and organisations are still slow in adopting stronger security measures.

Some organisations have a tough time finding ways to increase security without creating a lot of resistance from either employees or customers.

Especially as most employees don’t always think about security as their priority, while customers just want to access their accounts as quickly as possible.

Most employees hate additional authentication steps or hoops to jump through.

Nobody likes:

• Having to adhere to a strong password policy – logging in, logging in again, waiting for access, changing passwords every 90 days, complex passwords that are difficult to remember.
• Using antiquated two-factor authentication with cumbersome hardware tokens: adding a PIN code at every log-in, carrying around a hardware token, not to mention the expense to the organisation of replacing tokens and the support/maintenance drain on IT staff.
• Waiting on hold with Help Desk instead of immediately being able to help ourselves with tools like self-service password reset and account unlocking.

Individuals can make it easier on themselves by adapting and selecting access capabilities to fit their needs, removing barriers to adoption.

In October, SecureAuth conducted a survey on IT decision makers in the US and found that 69% of respondents say their organisation is likely to do away with passwords within the next five years.

This is good news. A growing movement of individuals and businesses opting for an authentication overhaul means there is a real understanding of the limitations of existing protocols and a concerted drive to limit the potential for future network breaches.

It’s in everyone’s best interest to make it more difficult for attackers to cause further damage to our economy.

Yet, these advocates often face multiple challenges from their company’s executives.

Top reasons hindering authentication strategy improvements cited by respondents to SecureAuth’s survey include:

1. Disruption to users’ daily routine.
2. Lack of resources to support maintenance.
3. Steep employee learning curve.
4. Fear the improvements wouldn’t work.

However, multi-factor authentication need not be disruptive, a simple user experience can be maintained.

User-friendly adaptive access technologies such as device recognition, threat services (leveraging information from a network of 11 million advanced threat sensors to determine blacklisted IP addresses), and geo-location look-up.

When used in layers, such techniques can strengthen any organisation’s security posture.

This enables users to stay both secure and productive with minimal disruption to their daily routines.

It’s time for companies to adapt and move away from the simple password.

To future-proof, organisations must look to invest in such adaptive authentication that contextualises the above elements for accurate user identification.

Importantly these techniques all happen behind the scenes, increasing security at the same time as not getting in the way of the end user experience.

Eliminating passwords removes any reliance on them and means that compromised credentials are no longer a risk.

Strong security during authentication no longer has to be at the expense of the end user, workers and organisations can now have both. It doesn’t have to be a compromise.

Source: InformationAge?

Research from Raconteur charts the factors that are transforming the the work envrionment over the next 5 to 10 years.

The research shows that new 'breakthrough' technologies are going to be the driving force in changing the way we work, with Cloud computing and storage having the most impact over the next five years.

We can also see that over the past 10 years, technology has impacted the work environment with E-mail and Smartphones leading the charge.

For more information, read Can machines learn and think from Raconteur’ 

Source: Raconteur

This is part of a five-year plan, and one of the key focuses is to fully convert health records, so that a patient’s NHS number could be accessed across both the NHS and a range of different social care systems, to aid integration and allow professionals to manage the quality of care provided.

One of the possibilities being considered is to begin using mobile devices across the health care sector, allowing staff to update electronic health records in real time. This change would eliminate the need for nursing staff working out in the community to go back to the hospital at the end of the day to input information, and would help to improve the recording of medical data in the long term.

Following investigations into cases such as Baby P, the lack of co-ordination between hospitals, social care and the police was highly criticised. The move to make records easily accessible to all of these departments would significantly improve community care and potentially save lives.

NHS IT roles at certes

For information on roles available for IT professionals in the NHS, please click here.

Our comprehensive guide to UK security clearance and a free DV checklist

UK Security Clearance is a crucial process that plays a significant role in safeguarding national security, ensuring the protection of sensitive information, and maintaining the integrity of critical institutions and organisations within the United Kingdom. It is a comprehensive evaluation and verification process carried out by government agencies to assess the suitability of individuals who require access to classified information or sensitive areas.

Brief contents summary:

1. What is Security Clearance
2. Types of Security Clearance
3. Can I only apply if I have a spotless history?
4. How long is Security Clearance valid for?
5. Is my application kept confidential?
6. How do I get my first Security Cleared job?
7. Free DV preparation checklist download

What is Security Clearance?

Security Clearance is granted as proof of an individual’s suitability to access sensitive and classified information without posing risk to national security.  It is a protection measure and obtaining the SC status requires that an individual undergoes a vetting process. This process will differ depending on the level of clearance required for the particular role, with the higher levels of access requiring a highly rigorous vetting process. The process raises many questions which is why we have compiled this comprehensive guide to UK Security Clearance. If you are looking into becoming DV-cleared, our free downloadable checklist at the end of this article provides you with a breakdown of all the personal information you need to have ready before you begin applying.

IT professionals who hold Security Clearance are in very high demand and tend to receive higher remuneration than their non-SC-cleared counterparts. An SC Clearance increases future employment opportunities as it serves as a strong selling point, even for jobs that don’t explicitly require Security Clearance.

Why do I need a Sponsor?

Obtaining Security Clearance is determined by the employing organisation, which sponsors the candidate’s vetting process for the specific role.

Control, transparency, and efficient resource utilization are key factors in the Security Clearance process. A sponsor verifies BPSS and the need for higher clearance, streamlining the otherwise bureaucratic and resource-draining process.

For non-SC-cleared candidates, there is fierce competition to secure a role that provides sponsorship for obtaining Security Clearance. Landing a job offer from a sponsoring company is the crucial first step, as it enables progression and a career in SC jobs. However, it creates a catch-22 situation: you need Security Clearance for an SC job, but you can’t apply without a sponsor.

How long is Security Clearance valid?

Once obtained, Security Clearance lasts for 5 years for contractors and 10 years for permanent candidates. DV clearance is held for 7 years with a reinvestigation conducted after 5 years. If an individual decides to change jobs while their SC clearance still has time left on it, they are free to apply for other roles which require SC clearance. At this point they will not need to undergo the vetting process; they will be able to begin the work immediately. This is especially useful for contract roles which often require people to start as soon as possible due to the critical nature of the job which needs completing.

Different types of Security Clearance

Security Clearance in the UK is divided into four levels.

• Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS)
• Security Check (SC)
• Counter-Terrorism Check (CTC)
• Developed Vetting (DV)

Baseline Personnel Security Standard

Baseline Personnel Security Standard is the initial mandatory check for individuals with access to Government assets. While it doesn’t provide access to classified information, progressing to higher clearance levels requires fulfilling BPSS requirements. The BPSS comprises identity checks – ID confirmation and right to work, employment checks for the last 3 years and a basic disclosure criminal record check.

Counter-Terrorism Check or CTC

Counter-Terrorism Check or CTC is used to check whether individuals have connections to terrorist organisations and examine the level to which they are vulnerable to pressure from such groups. This is checked on a personal level as well as a professional.  This clearance is required for anyone who has access to material that may be targeted by terrorist groups, anyone who works in close proximity to public figures and anyone who has unrestricted access to certain establishments.

Security Check or SC

Security Check or SC is the most common type of security clearance. It is conducted for candidates that are entering jobs which would give them access to secret, and occasionally, top-secret government assets. This check includes going through MI5 records, doing credit checks, checking reports from previous employers and potentially a face-to-face interview. The candidate needs to have been a resident of the UK for at least 5 years.  SC is transferable between different Government departments and it covers a variety of jobs.

Obtaining SC includes the following steps:

• BPSS clearance
• Completion of an SC questionnaire
• Departmental/Company Records Check
• Criminal Record Check
• Credit Reference Check and Security Service Check
• Security Service Check

Developed Vetting or DV

Developed Vetting or DV is the highest level of security clearance available in the UK and therefore requires the most rigorous process. This is required for individuals with frequent/unrestricted access to Top Secret files or those whose job has the potential to cause similar devastation/damage through means other than exposing such files

This process requires the applicant to volunteer a large amount of personal information as it is of utmost importance that a full picture of the individual is painted in order to guarantee reliability and establish confidence. However, it is not an interrogation and should not feel like one. If the applicant would find such a process unacceptably intrusive it might be worth reconsidering applying for DV clearance, as there is no way to avoid it.

Here are some of the main topics that tend to get covered in the interview:

Can I only apply if I have a spotless history?

While the process is rigorous and highly detailed, the eligibility criteria are fairly widely encompassing. At a basic level, the applicant needs to have been a resident in the UK for at least 10 consecutive years. For some roles, especially national intelligence ones, individuals must be British Citizens to apply. While the vetting process includes examining the applicant’s criminal record, financial situation and things like a history of substance abuse; this should not be a problem for most professionals. And in some cases, Security Clearance can be granted to individuals despite having a criminal conviction, although this is not standard practice and should not be something an individual with an obviously questionable history relies on.

The MI5 clearly states that:

“Vetting officers are not employed to make moral judgements – they expect that people will have had varied life experiences and they will take a realistic view of modern life and its pressures. They are aware that life can be complicated and any difficulties that you have experienced will be carefully considered.”

The vetting process is conducted by highly experienced vetting officers who examine each application on a case-by-case basis, so individuals can be confident that their application process will be conducted with utmost care and attention.

It’s all about honesty

Honesty is crucial in the application process. While it may be tempting to embellish or omit details, we strongly advise against it. Security Clearance is a testament to one’s integrity and trustworthiness in handling sensitive information. Approaching the process without integrity will backfire. Thorough background checks, especially for higher clearance levels, can uncover hidden information, jeopardizing the applicant’s chances of obtaining SC clearance.

Confidentiality

United Kingdom Security Vetting (USKV) take privacy and confidentiality very seriously – not just their own but also that of the applicants.

They abide by the Data Protection Act 1998 and ensure that personal data is kept in a lawful manner; that it remains accurate, up to date and used for no other purpose apart from national security vetting.  Each questionnaire that is to be completed as part of the vetting process clearly outlines how the data provided will be used.

Vetting records are usually kept by the UKSV for the duration of the individual’s working life. Privacy and security standards are upheld throughout, regardless of whether the individual holds a ‘live’ security clearance and irrespective of how sensitive or not the data might be.

Any personal information collected is handled with extremely strict confidence. Only if serious risks are identified – and this is an incredibly small number of cases – would the case be discussed with relevant security authorities.  In a few cases, some information might be shared with line management with the goal of managing risk. In these scenarios, the applicant’s permission will always be asked for prior to doing this.

How do I get my first SC job?

To overcome the “Catch 22” situation of obtaining your first SC-cleared job, there are proven strategies to enter the field.

While going for a contract SC role may seem like a good option to gain clearance and then move on to your desired job, the most successful path to building a Security Cleared career is actually starting in a permanent SC role.

The challenge with contract SC roles is finding an employer willing to wait for the lengthy clearance process. Contract positions are often short-term and time-sensitive, requiring individuals with existing clearances to start immediately. Delays of weeks or months, common with SC and DV clearances, are simply not feasible.

Permanent roles, on the other hand, naturally involve a delay between the application, job offer, and start date, regardless of whether SC is required. Factors such as notice periods, budget constraints, and other variables affect the start date. Organisations seeking permanent SC candidates are more likely to wait for the clearance process, especially if the applicant possesses a strong background and relevant experience. These organisations value the SC clearance as it allows them to benefit from the individual’s expertise.

Therefore, targeting permanent SC roles provides a greater likelihood of finding employers willing to wait for clearance, offering a viable pathway into the Security Cleared career you desire.

Keen to get going?

Obtaining higher-level clearance is laborious, but Security Cleared work offers job satisfaction and access to valuable information. At Certes, we collaborate with public sector organizations and suppliers seeking cleared candidates. Explore our current job openings and contact us for advice.

Developed Vetting preparation checklist

Follow the link to download your FREE Developed Vetting preparation checklist. It outlines all the documents and personal information you will need for your application – our recommendation is to get this ready before you begin.

Of course, nobody wants to pay more in tax and although the new dividend tax can’t be avoided, there are ways contractors can lessen the impact of the tax change.

General Advice

• Dividends may still be the most efficient way for contractors to extract profit their businesses
• Consider the timing of when dividends are taken in order to maximise tax benefits before new regulations come into play.
• Think about the structure of how you operate if drawing all the profits out of your business through dividends.

We would also recommend talking to a tax specialist as they can answer other questions that you may have and help you choose the best option for you.