2023 A Year in Review
by Miriam Hanna, Director
Well, that year came and went in the blink of an eye and blimey this year has been an interesting one. To review it succinctly will be a challenge but I will try my best to share the key takeaways from 2023 with a pinch of what to expect in 2024.
Salaries
The splashing of the cash that we saw in 2022 calmed this year. Our average salary uplift in 2022 was 17%, this year it was 13%. What’s even more interesting is to see how the in-house/agency split compares. In 2022 we saw a 21% uplift when someone was moving to an agency role and an 8% uplift when people were moving in-house. This has massively levelled out to a 14% increase for agency moves and 11% for in-house moves in 2023. This is an indication that in-house salaries are catching up with agencies but also that agencies aren’t spending as much as they did in 2022.
Hybrid Working
There is no denying that across the corporate world, business leaders are generally trying to get people back in the office. There are many ways firms are going about it. Some are increasing their mandated time and others are investing in the physical space and the incentives to be in such as training and free food! We know that because people have had a handful of years of getting used to working from home, perhaps making a move to a slightly less commutable distance from London and Brussels, this will be a big challenge. Having said that, in times of economic uncertainty and political change, the team being in the office, physically together makes for better collaboration, and better problem solving so it isn’t a stretch to say better work. No one is proposing a full 5-day week in the office, maybe at the very junior level, but it certainly will go up from the 2/3 average we see now.
Sales
Alicia has already shared her insight into the deals that took place this year with agencies being bought and consolidated across the industry. There was a real theme this year of businesses integrating and cultures aligning, some more successfully than others! I expect that to continue into next year as more deals are done across the industry.
Elections
Finally, the political climate has been tumultuous, to say the least, and this has had an impact on market activity this year. The uncertainty around leadership, the projected swing towards Labour in the UK, the upcoming European elections in Brussels, and the questions over how businesses manage with the backdrop of high interest rates have caused fluctuating market confidence. 2024 is the biggest year for elections with more people on the planet going to the polls than ever before. It will provide a dynamic and interesting context to operate in next year!
MadlinHanna Consulting is a recruitment consultancy specialising in public affairs, corporate communications and financial PR. Contact us in London on +44 (0) 20 8088 4102 or in Brussels on +32 (0) 2 586 38 98 for more information or a confidential conversation about these services and more.