CB Resourcing generously sponsored our recent Spring Social. We caught up with Simon Burton to pick his brains on the job market for information professionals in 2017.
How is the job market for information professionals performing compared to a year ago?
There is strong demand for information skills but not in isolation, employers want a specialisation which hasn’t really changed from a year ago. What’s really a continuing theme is the specialisation of skill sets whether towards specific technologies, industries or subject knowledge.
Do you recruit for many roles outside London?
Yes we do, this really depends upon sector.
If someone was relocating from London where are the hotspots for information professionals, are you seeing a growth in employment in these cities?
Academia is strong throughout most major cities whereas the legal sector has major hubs in Bristol and Manchester where we have been very busy. We’ve also seen extensive hiring by consulting firms in the major German cities.
Has Brexit affected the job market and if so, in what ways?
I haven’t seen any significant change, it appears to be business as usual.
If a professional were considering acquiring skills or experience in a particular area, what would you recommend to them?
This really depends upon the sector but written and verbal communication and presentation skills are very important in most organisations. Being skilled at using digital technology is also key. Whether its collaboration systems, analytics/data visualisation or anything else, information professionals are well placed to help their organisations navigate the digital world.
Are there any new types of job that you are seeing now that did not exist a couple of years ago?
Not entirely new but the trend is towards digital across most sectors. Many firms have been growing their teams in this area and there is a skills gap here.
Simon Burton is the Managing Director and Co-Founder of CB Resourcing, a leading knowledge & information management recruitment business. After a successful career in technology recruitment, several years ago Simon moved into the information industry. Initially with Marketresearch.com Profound, he subsequently worked for Forrester Research and Analysys Mason before co-founding CB Resourcing.
Simon can be contacted at