The REC’s Technology sector group recently invited London 2012 Head of Recruitment, Paul Modley, to speak about the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead during the countdown to the Olympic Games.
Modley spoke to REC Technology members at the annual Technology Summer Dinner and told them that by the time the Games start, the current workforce of about 700 will have increased to more than 200,000 paid employees, contractors and voluntary workers. It is entirely likely that umbrella company contractors will be part of this workforce.
The Olympic project is huge in terms of people, scale, locations and with an expected global audience of around four billion, technology will be at the centre of all its activities. The budget for technology is the project’s second largest expense, which proves just how much importance London 20102 places on IT specialists, Modley added.
Staff members working on Games related projects will be relieved to learn that a post-Games outplacement programme will be in place to help them find new jobs once the Olympics are over.
Lloyds Banking Group has carried out a survey that shows that SMEs and limited company contractors aren’t seeing the Games as a source of new business to the same extent that the bigger firms are. Slightly over half the small businesses surveyed recognised the potential as opposed to 70% of their larger counterparts.
The head of the London 2012 business team at Lloyds pointed out that there are still thousands of opportunities available for smaller outfits and contractors. With the Games just two years away we are approaching the home straight, but there’s still time for small businesses to join the race, he said.
As of March 2010, more than 10,000 businesses were working on projects associated with the Games, according to the Olympic Delivery Authority.
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