Swiss Flexible Working Leading The Way in Europe

Trends: Senior candidates increasing choosing smaller companies

One of the global working trends to come out of the pandemic is the desire for flexible working. Workers at all levels and across all geographies want the balanced lifestyle that comes with less commuting and more control over their working environment. As we have compiled our latest Salary Guide and Trends Reports, we have seen this trend across all our markets, from audit to cyber and clinical trials to insurance. In fact, our survey results showed that the primary factor driving candidates when they are looking for a new role is the ability to work flexibly.

What this means for blue chip companies

Many of our clients are large international insurance and finance organisations. They often run on a traditional business model and are used to people being in the office full time. For these organisations – and many other large businesses in other sectors – the pandemic forced a work-from-home culture that simply wouldn’t have been considered before. And candidates applied for these non-flexible roles because of the cache of working in a blue chip environment. Now, however, these companies face serious competition from smaller agile companies who understand that they will be more productive and more prepared for any further market turmoil if they have happy employees who are working in the right conditions. This is the type of environment that candidates are looking for – and they are now more likely to take a flexible role over one that simply has brand appeal. This is true at all levels – but we are starting to see it particularly at senior role level. These are people who want to further their careers, but are also often at the stage in life where they have families or other caring commitments. They want challenge and they want good rates of pay – and they also want working flexibility.

Adopting a Swiss working culture

Switzerland has been a pioneer for flexible working for many years – offering flexible options well before the pandemic made them compulsory. That means that Swiss-based companies are far more attractive to the growing number of skilled and talented candidates looking for a new role. With a far less traditional, hours-hungry, office-based approach than their counterparts in much of Europe and North America, Switzerland is an attractive place to relocate to – particularly for senior professionals who may have already worked in the country and so understand its unique regulatory and operating environment. We work with small companies in the finance and insurance sector, as well as with some of the biggest names in the market, helping them to find the candidates that best fit their hiring requirements – and working in partnership with them to help them improve their benefits and working packages so they can attract the best candidates across the board.