Glasgow's superb transport networks allow employers in the IFSD
to draw on a huge labour pool with 1.5 million people in the
city's travel to work area.
Glasgow builds on a strong heritage in financial services with
some of the city's major insurance companies for example having a
presence in the city for over 100 years.
Latest estimates show that over 30,000 people work in the
financial services sector in Glasgow. That's an impressive one in
13 of the city's entire workforce.
It's very much a case of quantity and quality.
Qualified Staff
Financial sector staff are better qualified in Scotland than the
rest of the UK, with a higher proportion gaining post-secondary
education.
Almost half (46%) of all Glaswegians in employment are educated
to degree level, making the city's workforce one of the best
qualified in the UK. The city also offers excellent levels of
multi-lingual ability.
Staff retention is good, according to 73% of employers who
responded recently to an independent survey - with Glasgow
companies developing new initiatives to further reduce staff
turnover and keep costs down.
Competitive Salaries
Salaries in financial services in Scotland are highly
competitive. Indeed, overheads generally are 32% lower than in
London for a comparable business.
Glasgow is especially well placed in relation to recent
exponential gwowth in the Fintech sector with proportionately high
IT professional employment in the financial sector. This is
underlined by JP Morgan which established its European Technology
Centre in the IFSD in 2001, to develop complex financial software
for application across its operation.
Initial plans to recruit a total of 300 have expanded
consistently to the point where the company now employs well over
1,000 mainly graduate level IT professionals at its IFSD base.
Glasgow's workforce is highly rated by companies already located
in the city, many of whom comment favourably on a 'can do' attitude
in the workplace, accompanied by the traditional Glaswegian
reputation for warmth, humour and friendliness.
Future Skills Development
The public sector, led by Scottish Enterprise and Glasgow City
Council, works continuously and closely in partnership with
universities, colleges, schools, Skills Development Scotland and a
host of professional trade bodies to deliver a well qualified,
experienced talent pieline for financial and business services
companies.
Further Information
If you have any queries or would like more information on the
range of support available to financial services companies in
Glasgow, then contact ifsd.enquiries@scotent.co.uk
THEY SAID IT …
"We were keen to identify a location that would offer us the
ability to recruit additional teams of high calibre contact centre
personnel as well as give us the opportunity for further expansion.
Glasgow, with its vibrant financial services district, is well
suited for our needs."
Simon Rubin, Managing Director, First Data
UK