* Hiring back to pre-recessionary levels - survey
* Professional services wages up 2.6 pct yr-on-yr - survey
* Firms struggle to find skilled candidates
LONDON, Oct 23 (Reuters) - A talent shortage in Britain'sfinancial services and technology sectors has pushed salaries inthe industry up by 2.6 percent in the last year, ahead ofinflation and outpacing sluggish UK wage growth, research showedon Thursday.
Hiring across finance and accounting, financial services,information technology and administration has returned topre-recessionary levels, with demand for staff far exceedingsupply as businesses start to target growth as well asefficiency, according to the 2015 Robert Half Salary Guide.
In financial services, 97 percent of executives surveyedreported challenges in finding candidates with the right skills.
Phil Sheridan, senior managing director at specialistfinance and accounting recruitment firm Robert Half, said thebest candidates have received multiple offers and counteroffers.
"It is therefore crucial that the remuneration companiesoffer is competitive with other businesses in their industry andregion," Sheridan said.
Banks including HSBC have complained that a newEuropean Union cap on bonuses could add to difficulty inrecruiting staff.
Many banks introduced "role-based" allowances to counter thecap, but European regulators have said that they constitutevariable pay and may need to be restructured.
But Robert Half found that money is not the only thing onemployees' minds. Many are also looking for other benefits andperks, such as flexibility in their work-life balance.
A vast majority of executives also said that companies'attempts to overhaul their culture to focus more on riskmanagement was impeding growth plans. However, regulatory andrisk management-related roles were among those that saw thestrongest pay increases over the last 12 months.
Robert Half said its study also found that cyber securityhad jumped up companies' priority lists.
Financial services firms, especially banks, have beenbeefing up their cyber defences in recent years, spendinghundreds of millions of dollars a year in the process.
But recent news of one of the biggest data breaches incorporate history at JPMorgan has shown that thefinancial services sector remains vulnerable to online attacks.
Almost 40 percent of financial services organisations werehiring permanent staff to manage cyber security initiatives,Robert Half said.
(For the full 2015 Robert Half Salary Guide, click: http://www.roberthalf.co.uk/salary-centre?utm_source=press&utm_medium=press&utm_campaign=salary-guide)
(Reporting by Clare Hutchison, editing by David Evans)
HSBC Holdings (HSBA)
