Scott Burkeman: I have been involved in Forensic Technology and Fraud recruitment for over a decade, working for an international recruitment firm and more recently with Warner Scott. I initially began placing Senior Forensic Accounting professionals prior to the boom in Computer Forensics. Many of my clients were looking to develop Computer Forensic teams from scratch and asked me to get involved in the recruitment of Forensic Technology candidates to assist in their growth plans. Since then, the rest is history!

Warner Scott Recruitment was set up in 2006 as a specialist recruitment consultancy with the vision of developing long-standing, meaningful relationships with both our candidates and clients. We have a strong focus on the Computer Forensic and eDiscovery market and are one of only a handful of specialist consultancies that have a dedicated team focusing in this area.

Many of the candidates we have placed over the years are now our clients and vice versa. We pride ourselves in our market knowledge, deep relationships and a strong understanding of the markets we operate in. We are fortunate enough to work on many roles on an exclusive basis as our clients trust us enough to find the best people in the market.

The Computer Forensic area is an extremely unique market to operate within and has some wonderful characters and personalities that make this area a pleasure to work in.

Forensic Focus: What services do you offer to digital forensics jobseekers?

Scott Burkeman: We are more than just a recruitment firm. As well as placing candidates into roles, we offer career advice and counselling, coaching, CV advice, interview tips and much more. As mentioned above, we are keen to develop long term relationships with our candidates, so if anyone fancies a chat about the state of the market, is looking to benchmark their salary or just wants some career advice, please do not hesitate to call us, or pop in to see us for a coffee and chat.

Forensic Focus: What is the current state of the digital forensics job market? Which sectors are hiring?

Scott Burkeman: The market has been up and down in recent years, which has been characterised by the state of the wider economy. With the government cuts in public spending, there has been much uncertainty within the public sector, which has resulted in some redundancies. Many private sector companies which previously had large government contracts have had to adapt and change to accommodate the loss of work.

However, the eDiscovery & Litigation Support market continues to remains buoyant as well as the Data Analytics arena. The large consultancy firms and international boutiques are still hiring the best candidates and increasingly Banks and Corporates are approaching us to help fill in-house Investigations roles.

With the increase of Anti Money Laundering (AML) projects and the introduction of the Anti Bribery & Corruption Act this year, the demand for Forensic Technology experts with strong corporate investigations experience remains high.

Forensic Focus: Which skill sets are most in-demand at the moment?

Scott Burkeman: Employers are currently seeking skills within Corporate Investigations, eDiscovery, Litigation Support and Data Analytics.

Specific technical skills and software knowledge currently in demand include Encase, FTK, Autonomy, Concordance, iCONECT and Relativity.

Forensic Focus: What do you make of the rising number of courses taught at colleges and universities?

Scott Burkeman: An increase in Digital Forensic courses can only be a good thing in the long term. The courses not only increase the technical knowledge of graduates, but also promote Computer Forensic careers to a wider audience. With the increasing size of Forensic teams within large organisations, the need for graduates will continue to remain high. That said, there may not always be enough graduate roles to accommodate all graduates, so it is important to make yourself stand out from the crowd. Any work experience that you can gain whilst studying, such as a 1 year work placement, is often enough to give graduates the competitive edge.

Forensic Focus: A number of jobs you've posted to the Forensic Focus forums have been for positions overseas - can you tell us more about opportunities outside the UK?

Scott Burkeman: As a business, Warner Scott not only places Digital Forensic professionals in the UK, but we also specialise in international recruitment. We are currently assisting a number of global organisations in their expansion plans in locations including the Middle East, Australia and Asia. We have recruited a number of Forensic Directors with the remit to set up digital forensic departments and are now in the process of helping them to recruit their teams.

Working abroad can be a fantastic opportunity to benefit from accelerated career progression, gain exposure to new cultures and in many cases can be financially rewarding due to tax savings. For many jurisdictions, English is the main business language so often there is no need to speak a second language. UK experience is highly regarded and sought after and common software like Encase is often used around the globe.

Forensic Focus: What do you do to relax when you're not working?

Scott Burkeman: Having recently had a baby daughter, most of my spare time is spent with my family. When I have some free time, I can normally be found at White Hart Lane watching my other passion in life (other than Digital Forensic recruitment); the mighty Spurs!

Scott Burkeman at Warner Scott Recruitment specialises in computer forensics recruitment and can be contacted as follows:

Email: sb@warnerscott.com
Tel: +44 (0)20 7038 3615