Management consultancy recruiters have this week been rushing to sign up as exhibitors for the 2006 Management Consultancy Careers Fair, organised by www.Top-Consultant.com and due to take place at The Barbican exhibition hall in London later this year. Last Octoberís event was a sell-out, with both recruiters and candidates having to be turned away in the weeks leading up to the Fair. This yearís event is expected to be more popular still on the back of rising client demand for consulting services and an increasingly acute problem in sourcing consultants for newly won assignments. As Top-Consultant Director Tony Restell remarks:
ìLast yearís Management Consultancy Careers Fair was marketed at a time of rising recruitment demand within the consulting sector. The careers fair format was a new offering for us and weíre grateful to all those consulting firms who signed up to attend the inaugural event. Many recruiters regretted not having signed up in time and lost out to those competitors that did exhibit at the Fair. This has created pent-up demand for the 2006 Fair - and of course in the intervening year the market for candidates has just got fiercer still!î
ìFor 2006 weíve therefore chosen a venue and marketing partners that will make the Fair bigger and better than last year ñ and that crucially will attract new blood into the industry. Firms have asked us to help them reach candidates outside the Top-Consultant readership and with this yearís marketing programme we are sure to achieve this goal.î
Firms that attended last yearís fair have been able to book places for the 2006 event for the last week ñ and the overwhelming interest thatís been generated these last days has just served to highlight that candidate attraction remains a core strategic priority for consultancies both big and small. ìIndeed such is the ferocity of the War for Talent that weíve already seen extreme competition to secure the best plots at this yearís Fairî concludes Restell. Spaces at this yearís fair are being allocated according to the order in which booking forms are received ñ and several major firms returned their booking forms within 24 hours of receiving their marketing packs, such is the competition for talent right now.
Broadening candidate appeal ñ a key priority
On the marketing side, a major objective for the Top-Consultant team has been to broaden the candidate appeal of this yearís event. ìWith the candidate market now exceedingly tight, anything we can do to attract more talent into the industry will be of benefit to allî comments Restell. A media partnership with the Evening Standard will raise the profile of this yearís Fair and ensure it attracts a new pool of City professionals and executives. In parallel, a broad promotion campaign with leading online recruitment websites will also help the Fair to attract City analysts, accountants, journalists and other professional types. Signed up to promote this yearís fair are CityJobs, e-consultancy, eFinancialCareers, Exec-Appointments, GAAPweb and Jobsite - plus event partners the Management Consultancies Association and the Institute of Management Consultancy.
Full details of the Fair will be made available to readers early in the summer. In the meantime, recruiters interested in finding out about exhibiting at this yearís Careers Fair should contact Sacha Jackson on sachaj@top-consultant.com
Management consultancies vying for top spots
Management consultancy recruiters have this week been rushing to sign up as exhibitors for the 2006 Management Consultancy Careers Fair
