The larger firms have built their staff levels from a standing start (Goldman had 56 employees in 1978 in London, Morgan Stanley had not even opened an office) to a cast of thousands.This was an extraordinary period of expansion that has come to an end. At best, employment levels will stagnate at this high level and fluctuate slightly around it with the ebb and flow of business levels.Professionals should be relatively safe from the trend towards overseas outsourcing or automation. Individual employees, however, will be under pressure to perform and may be weeded out in favour of younger staff that is potentially cheaper and keen to move up the career ladder.
