Irish Life and Permanent is looking to tempt expats back to Ireland to fill the 100 advisor roles it has created.

The group has announced ambitious plans to up the number of advisors by 100, to a total of 400 by the end of next year. It plans to look locally, but also hopes Australia, Hong Kong, the UK and Europe could prove fertile hunting grounds.

Irish Life and Permanent says it expects business to grow by 30% over the next year – driven by the need to “manage the wealth of the wealthy” – and needs to invest in people.

Greg O’Hanlon, executive search consultant at recruiters Dalríada, who returned to Ireland from Australia himself this year, says: “A lot of people in this industry moved from Ireland to go and work in Australia 15 years ago and went to National Mutual, which became Axa, and they might be up for coming home for the right sort of opportunity.”

Australia’s financial services industry is itself suffering a skills shortage . The notoriously mobile population could be swayed to the Emerald Isle for a couple of years, reckons O’Hanlon. But a temporary fix wouldn’t be very appealing for Irish Life and Permanent.

It’s a buoyant time for the Irish insurance industry, and recruiters say increased investment in life and pensions policies, combined with new operators such as the Quinn Group, have created a lot of jobs.

However, recruiters also claim that it’s nearly impossible to source candidates locally, and salaries are being driven up as a result. A personal financial advisor in a big firm like Irish Life and Permanent could command €50k to €70k.

Meanwhile, recruiter Joslin Rowe’s 2007/08 salary survey says a senior underwriter can earn around 6% more than last year. A senior underwriting manager can bring in €75k to €95k, as opposed to €70k to €90k in 2006.

Irish Life is not just looking to foreign climes for its new recruits. The firm says it would be interested to hear from financial services professionals in sales or client-facing roles. Full training will be offered.