Over the past six months candidates have become more willing to move, not simply within the same job silo, but into an entirely new type of role.

“The GFC caused a lack of career growth and halted pay rises within most companies. The lack of challenge, and frustration within current jobs has resulted in individuals pursuing other options and career paths,” says Ben Carroll, consultant, finance banking contract, Robert Walters.

Charles Sampson, a consultant at Manpower, agrees: “A frequent comment from candidates is that they feel they have not been adequately recognised or rewarded during the tough times and this is motivating them to look around.”

But how open are employers to career-change candidates who don’t 100 per cent fit the job description? Carroll says the increase in recruitment volumes has recently made banks more flexible as to candidates’ backgrounds.

“A highly-skilled candidate shortage within the Melbourne market has seen employers focus on securing the core attributes needed for the role and then managing and/or training those absent skill sets,” comments Carroll.

The banking sector is, for example, hiring more accountants from outside of financial services. “Strong candidates from large listed corporates are being looked at more favourably due to their commercial manner of thinking and diverse skill sets,” adds Carroll.

Sampson says the increased willingness to accept movement across different functions is more apparent for senior vacancies. “Many people have actively sought to diversify their skills and knowledge through project work or suchlike to ensure they have the ability to be considered for a wider range of future opportunities, both internally and externally.”

Moving is still tough for the masses

For more junior job seekers, however, making a career change isn’t easy because the talent pool available for most jobs is still large. “Employers can be selective with regard to candidates and there is not the perceived need yet to train potential staff into roles,” says Sampson.

He also believes that moving from the back office to the front office remains hugely challenging. “Typically front-office staff have strong communication skills and are outgoing; characteristics that are not naturally found in many back-office staff.”

Carroll adds that the rare cases of operations employees transitioning into revenue-generating roles usually involve internal progressions, rather than external recruitment.

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