Find out more about the latest salary trends in Manchester.
Manchester is one of the UK’s foremost economic engines. A few months ago, chancellor George Osborne affirmed that this thriving city was ready to become the economic powerhouse of northern England, stating that it could eventually rival London in terms of employment generation and international prestige.
Manchester is already an important hub for the financial and banking sectors, since it employs over 100,000 professionals in these industries.
The professional services industry is also a booming sector in the city. Overall, the 2015 economic outlook is positive for both employers and employees in Manchester, as many firms have decided to take advantage of a recovering economy to expand or to commission new projects and therefore need to invest in recruitment.
More importantly, salaries in high-value industries are set to grow during 2015 across Manchester and the north of England. Below you will find a detailed summary of the key salary trends for 2015.
According to a recent article published by recruitment specialists at Robert Half, during 2015 we can expect to see an increase in the demand for qualified finance professionals in Manchester. Employers will particularly value certain skills, like budgeting, margin analysis, forecasting, and cost efficiency.
Other professionals that are expected to be in high demand in the Manchester job market include business and management information specialists, credit controllers, accounts assistants, financial planners, purchase ledger clerks. There are important skills shortages in these areas, as well as in other high-value sectors like technology and administration.
Another piece of good news refers to a set of data released by Robert Half, which shows that nearly 45 per cent of all Northern CFOs have plans to increase the salaries during 2015. On average, salaries in this market sub-sector are expected to rise by 4 per cent during the next 12 months.
The data shows that the highest rises are expected to benefit commercial financial controllers working for large firms in Manchester, as their average salaries will range between £69,400 and £80,400 / year. This figure represents a 4.2 per cent increase over last year’s salaries. Financial controllers working for small and medium-sized companies are also likely to see a substantial increase in their salaries this year, as they are expected to grow by 4.1 per cent and to go from £65,000 to £76,400.
Finance directors working for large companies in Manchester are also likely to benefit from the positive outlook of the local job market. According to analysts at Robert Half, their salaries will rise by 4 per cent and will range between £70,400 and £116,000 / year. The same applies to financial business partners working in SMEs, as their salaries will grow by 4.2 per cent and fluctuate between £42,000 and nearly £50,000 / year.
In the case of compliance managers, average salary increases in Manchester are expected to reach 3.4 per cent this year, bringing annual salaries up to £63,600.
Along the same lines, purchase ledger clerk salaries will rise by 3.8 per cent, reaching values of between £15,300 and £22,800 / year.
Other noteworthy salary increases include the following:
- Assistant accountants (2.8 per cent increase / minimum £21,400 – maximum £29,700)
- Credit controllers ( 2.1 per cent increase / minimum £18,300 – maximum £26,500)
- Financial planners (2.1 per cent increase / minimum £59,000 – maximum £66,000)
- Regulatory accounting managers (5.9 per cent increase / minimum £71,250 – maximum £88,250)
- Experienced accountants with 4 to 7 years’ PQE (4.5 per cent increase / minimum £64,000 – maximum £82,250)
- Heads of operational risk management (5.4 per cent increase / minimum £90,250 – maximum £170,750)
In the IT industry, important salary increases are expected to affect these positions:
- Chief Information Officers (4 per cent increase / minimum £124,750 – maximum £239,750)
- Data architects (5.5 per cent increase / minimum £58,500 – maximum £76,750)
- Software developers (5.4 per cent increase / minimum £31,250 – maximum £72,000)
- Information security managers (4.5 per cent increase / minimum £72,500 – maximum £95,750)
- Business intelligence analysts (4.2 per cent increase / minimum £46,500 – maximum £59,500)
Manchester-based employers are also finding it increasingly difficult to fill certain administrative positions. The most significant salary increases will involve professionals such as:
- Executive assistants (4.3 per cent increase / minimum £28,500 – maximum £37,750)
- Marketing assistants (3.5 per cent increse/ minimum £18,000 – maximum £26,500)
- Digital & Online assistants (3.5 per cent increase / minimum £22,000 – maximum £29,750)
It is important to remember that salary increases are not limited to a raise in monthly wages, as there are other remuneration strategies that are often used to the same end.
In particular, Manchester companies are likely to resort to offering benefits like the use of a company car, the implementation of mentoring schemes, subsidising training, offering the possibility of telecommuting, adding pension contributions, increasing private healthcare coverage, offering equity/profit sharing, or covering the costs of mobile phones, tablet PCs, or laptops used for business purposes.
There is yet another way in which employees working in the financial sector can benefit from higher salaries. According to the Robert Half report, more than 66 per cent of all CFOs in the north of England are willing to pay sign-on bonuses to new and talented employees.
Main image by Duncan Hull @ Flickr – MediaCityUK at night, Salford Quays, Manchester.
