Jobs created as Big Four firms look to benefit from Scottish company cost-cutting
Ernst & Young is set for a Scottish recruitment spree, and it's not the only one. A growing demand from corporates north of the border for business transformation advice is likely to create jobs within Big Four firms in the future.
Following the appointment of Stephen Farrell in October to head up its advisory practice in Scotland, Ernst & Young is expanding its team. Farrell joined from consulting firm Mouchel, and specialises in business transformation and performance improvement - something ailing Scottish companies are badly in need of.
Scotland saw 83 companies slip into insolvency in September, up from 72 in August and 49 at the same point last year, according to figures from Experian.
Reports in The Scotsman suggest that E&Y will hire 140 people over three years, but a spokesperson tells us that the figure is more likely to be 100 experienced recruits for its advisory practice and a further 70 graduates.
The roles will be split across Aberdeen, Glasgow and Edinburgh.
E&Y says that it expects to encounter a "war for talent" in this area, but this could also be down to the fact that other Big Four firms also recognise the opportunity and are hiring.
Deloitte tells us that it has been building its restructuring team and focusing more on the corporate sector in Scotland.
Chris McKay, director in Deloitte's restructuring practice in Glasgow, says: "As we begin to emerge from the recession, one of the things we believe we'll see is companies potentially failing through not having sufficient capital facilities to enable growth, which may be difficult to secure from banks because they're weighed down by losses incurred in the recession. There's a real opportunity for us to help in these scenarios."
E&Y says it will focus on helping companies cut costs in both the public and private sector. But there's likely to a range of skills needed, suggests McKay.
"Each case needs to be weighed up individually, depending on the how much stress the company is in," he says. "This can involve either classic corporate finance advice around putting in place an appropriate financing structure, or more urgent fire fighting techniques to manage a short term liquidity crisis."
