Happy New Year! Well financial year at least. Once an Accountant always an Accountant! Hi there, my name is Mark Smith and I am the Managing Director of people2people. With the new financial year, I thought it would be a good time to provide everyone with a quick market update.

The first half of 2016 has seen the job market in both Sydney and Melbourne maintain a strength not seen for years. There are definite shortages of quality talent in the areas of legal support, sales and even experienced customer service reps. At more senior levels, the market is improving. Within the accounting sector, systems’ skills are in demand, but roles at the CFO level are more scarce.

The Brisbane market is improving, but there is limited movement on salaries. Those shifting from the mining sector should expect to even take a drop. The contract and temporary markets are booming for people2people. This may be us taking market share, but it is also reflective of a market that is looking for skilled staff for short term projects. More recently, the uncertainty in markets has encouraged many businesses to consider temporary staff. Overall, it looks like the second half of 2016 should be good, but not great, with particularly good markets in Australia’s biggest cities of Sydney and Melbourne. Happy New Year!