2016 already looking positive for financial services jobs as top consultants net salaries of £97,000
The new year may have only just begun but there are already signs of 2016 being a strong year for financial sector jobs.
According to findings released today by recruiter Morgan McKinley, many employers have already kicked off their 2016 hiring.
“Despite a rude awakening to the start of the year from financial markets, we’ve actually had a record number of interviews requested in the first week of January, indicating an uptick could be ahead,” said Hakan Enver, operations director at Morgan McKinley Financial Services. “There’s enough evidence to suggest, going into the new year, that we could expect that trend to continue upward for both jobs open and professionals seeking new positions.”
Meanwhile, figures from salary comparison website Emolument, which were also released today, revealed the best firms for high salaries for consultants, with Boston Consulting Group claiming first place.
Read more: London's new year hiring intentions above average
Consultants at Boston Consulting Group have a median salary and bonus of £63,000, while senior consultants at the firm could expect to take home £97,000.
| Firm | Median Salary and Bonus for Consultants | Median Salary and Bonus for Senior Consultants | Bonus Satisfaction Rating |
| Boston Consulting Group | £63,000 | £97,000 | 75% |
| McKinsey & Company | £48,000 | £91,750 | 50% |
| OC&C Strategy Consultants | £52,000 | £92,000 | 86% |
| Bain & Company | £46,000 | £98,000 | 50% |
| Capco | £40,000 | £78,450 | 14% |
| Accenture | £32,000 | £46,871 | 55% |
| PwC | £33,850 | £49,000 | 17% |
| KPMG | £34,006 | £53,450 | 32% |
| Deloitte | £34,000 | £55,400 | 22% |
| Ernst & Young | £33,900 | £44,800 | 0% |
Emolument also revealed that graduates seeking a career in financial services could expect a median salary of £45,000 if they headed into the M&A departments of banks, but £35,000 if they went into management and strategy consultancy.
“Graduates often make a choice between banking and consulting without knowing the financial implications of their decisions,” said Alice Leguay, co-founder of Emolument. “Both seen as prestigious next-steps to their university degree, they imply vastly different working environments, and rewards.
“With more and more graduates looking to work for startups or start their own business, management and strategy as well as IT consulting may well become more appealing than banking, giving graduates a more hands-on approach to running a business.”
Read more: Financial sector jobs boom spreads across UK
However, according to Morgan McKinley, December was not such a promising month for financial services recruitment, with available jobs down by 33 per cent month-on-month and jobseekers, who traditionally put jobhunting to one side when bonus season is looming, down month-on-month by 32 per cent.
“Over the course of 2015, we saw a tale of two halves,” said Enver. “In the first half, there was a general positive growth in sentiment and an overall appetite to hire.
“Things took a turn during the summer period, particularly when heading into September, where we didn’t see the anticipated increase in volumes. In fact, numbers decreased even further.”