Over three in five (63%) of financial services firms believe that more encouragement is needed to attract younger people to the industry, new research from Davies has indicated.

Davies, the specialist professional services and technology business, found that the top challenge when attracting talent was meeting a salary, with 43% of senior leaders citing it.

The research was conducted with 504 full-time employees working for UK financial services businesses. Davies found that other key challenges relating to retaining and developing talent included offering a balance between remote and on-site work, with 38% of senior leaders citing it as a challenge.

This was ahead of offering comprehensive benefits packages (36%), demonstrating clear career development opportunities (35%) and caring for employee mental well-being (33%).

“Ultimately, the findings show that organisations must overcome many challenges if they are to attract and retain the best talent,” regulated markets at Davies, David Leen, said. “Offering competitive salaries is important but businesses must focus on developing a rounded offering to present to prospective and current staff if they want to win the fierce battle for talent.”

Senior partner – professional education at Davies, Craig Potter, added: “That such a high proportion of managers have identified the need to attract younger talent to the sector shows that this is an ongoing and urgent challenge.

“Financial services organisations must be able to compete with other industries to attract the most talented individuals. As such, they need to have strategies in place not only to recruit younger colleagues in the first place but to develop and nurture them effectively, paving the way for a new generation of senior leaders.”

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