Bain and Gray is becoming ever more recognised as thought leaders in the world of Executive Support recruitment. Sourcing the very best candidates in London in support roles ranging from Receptionists, Team Assistants, Office Managers, PAs, Executive Assistants and Chiefs of Staff roles.
We have always shared our salary information and benefits to ensure that you have the knowledge to remain competitive in recruiting these types of candidates at every level.
With near full employment throughout 2019, we expect talent shortages to continue throughout 2020 and companies that can turn around the process within approximately 3 weeks will gain the trust and respect from candidates considering a move.
The data we have confidentially captured is from leading global brands and the most respected employers both in London and internationally.
We have also had more and more interest from clients requesting virtual PAs, some of this has been satisfied via our temporary desk, for shorter term assignments. However, in the latter half of 2019 we have had a number of requests from clients requesting candidates to work in virtual PA roles; completely working from home with intermittent time spent in the office.
The roles highlighted here are the permanent roles we have placed throughout 2019.
| Minimum | Maximum | Average | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Receptionist | £22,000 | £30,000 | £26,571 |
| Team Assistant/Team Co-Ordinator | £22,000 | £42,500 | £29,029 |
| Office Administrator | £26,000 | £45,000 | £30,562 |
| Office Manager | £25,000 | £62,000 | £35,863 |
| PA | £25,000 | £50,000 | £33,294 |
| Team PA | £30,000 | £48,000 | £39,200 |
| Executive Assistant | £34,000 | £60,000 | £44,787 |
| Business and Private PA | £45,000 | £60,000 | £52,000 |
| Private PA | £38,000 | £78,000 | £52,700 |
| Business Assistant | £55,000 | £70,000 | £62,500 |
| Global PA | £55,000 | £80,000 | £71,250 |
| Chief of Staff | £55,000 | £120,000 | £90,000 |
We have split out PA roles and Team PA roles this year. PA roles listed here include 1:1/2 roles and the Team PA roles are typically for a Director level team. The lower starting salary for the PA roles, represents a couple of smaller organisations we have recruited for.
Compared to the prior year there is little movement in salaries overall; one worth mentioning however is the level of starting salaries, which has crept up. Last year some of the junior roles (typically straight out of secretarial college) started at £18,000; in 2019 we saw our starting salaries, typically for junior receptionist and junior team support roles rise to £22,000. We have continued to place an increasing number of these roles, due in large part to our strengthening relationships with the secretarial colleges.
Regarding benefits; the main attractions remain a collection of pension, health, bonus and flexible working. Increasingly flexible working and a percentage bonus offering (rather than discretionary) can be the clincher for accepting one position over another. More and more companies are offering 25 days holidays, with more than half of our roles offering 25 days (some roles increasing to 30 days after 2 years of service).
Other benefits that are attractive to candidates are well-being initiatives, free lunches and working from home, (usually after a probation period).
Maternity contracts
We have found increasingly that clients are offering completion bonuses for candidates who stay the course for a maternity cover. This has ranged between 10-20% of the pro-rated salary.
International roles
We have seen the number of international PA roles that we have been working on throughout 2019 increase; including roles in Monaco, Dubai, India and Qatar, inter alia in the past year. These roles tend to be working for private individuals or very senior executives within companies. As such bonuses, hours and ‘company benefits’ are particular to the role, the company and the individual being offered.
Chief of staff roles
We have found these roles vary enormously depending on the organisation, the industry and the individual whom they are working for. The career paths too, can vary with typical candidates coming via an EA route, ex Services or the corporate world.
Recruitment Process
We have seen the average life cycle of a hire remain stagnant at around 5/6 weeks. The clients that turnaround the process quickly, within 2-3 weeks, are finding they have the pick of the market and are able to source the best candidates available.
Temporary Recruitment
We have seen an increase throughout 2019 in the number of candidates registering with Bain and Gray for temporary work. This increase in volume of temporary workers is predominantly seen in the so called ‘Slash Generation’. Instead of being specialised in one skill-set, these candidates tend to prefer to satisfy their creative and financial requirements through two or more roles. Working as a temp sits well alongside developing another career. This has worked well for the increase in numbers of registrations on our temporary desk and has seen, consequently, a quicker turnaround time in our ability to satisfy client temporary requirements.
