Could it be? A sector with bigger bonuses, rising salaries and prolific job creation
If job creation has been positive within Ireland's funds industry in 2011, the next six months look set to be even better - 1,000 new roles have been predicted. What's more pay is on the up and companies are even paying (whisper it) bonuses. Is all this too good to be true?
Recruiters Marks Sattin's research predicts that, by March 2012, an additional 1,000 jobs will be created with Ireland's fund services industry. This follows the Irish Funds Industry Associations assertion that over 700 new jobs emerge by the end of 2011.
Looking at the strong growth in assets under administration in Ireland, these predictions make sense. Assets now stand at around €1.81 trillion, according to statistics from the Central Bank of Ireland and IFIA, up from €1.6trillion in Q1 2010.
Matthew Fitzpatrick, manager of the financial services division at Marks Sattin, says that Ireland's "strong knowledge base and existing funds services experts are proving very attractive to potential investors".
This is all very positive. However, let's not forget that many of the larger fund services firms in Ireland are multi-national companies, some of whom - BNY Mellon and State Street, for instance - have recently made redundancies elsewhere in the world.
Recruitment sources suggest that some big international funds firms have become more cautious recently, and hiring freezes are in place within certain institutions.
"The pipeline of new business is very positive for fund administrators in Ireland, and many have been talking about the need to boost headcount significantly in the next six months," says Patrick Kelly, senior manager at headhunters Lincoln Search & Selection. "However, volatility globally has led some firms to apply the handbrake on recruitment for now."
Pay is on the rise
Despite this, the result of increased demand for funds professionals over the course of this year has helped push salaries up. Fund accountants have received average increases of 12.5% this year, suggests Marks Sattin, while heads of operations roles have seen pay increase by 8%.
If you're earning more than €90k, bonuses in the sector have increased to around 20% of salary, it adds, while they've re-emerged even in the more junior ranks to 12% of base pay.
In many cases, these increases in pay are being accompanied by promotions, says Fitzpatrick.
"There's been some positive impact on salaries being offered in recent months, but let's not forget that salaries dropped by around 10-20% in 2008, and this has been followed by a protracted period of pay freezes in most organisations," adds Kelly.
