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Search Firms Bullish On 2007 Employment Market Recruiters Confidence At New Record As Executive Job Growth Hits Highest Level Since 2000
www.execunet.com — January 10, 2007 — Much to the dismay of companies striving to hire the best and brightest talent during this surging employment market, the art of recruiting and retaining executives appears poised to grow even more challenging in the year ahead. ExecuNet's Recruiters Confidence Index (RCI) reached a new all-time high in December amid expectations that executive search assignments will increase by more than twenty percent for the second consecutive year in 2007.
Introduced in May 2003, the Recruiters Confidence Index is based on a monthly survey of thousands of executive recruiters conducted by ExecuNet (www.execunet.com), the leading executive career, business and recruiting network. Independent analysis of the RCI has confirmed it is a leading indicator for the executive search industry.
According to the survey of 120 executive recruiters, 83% are confident or very confident the executive employment market will improve during the next six months – up from 80% last month. Confidence among recruiters has never been higher in the history of the index.
Confidence In The Executive Employment Market
Next Six Months
"Based on the volume of quality job opportunities that are being created as companies look to increase revenues, we expect a large number of executives to jump into the market in search of a new challenge or opportunity during the next three months," says Mark Anderson, President of ExecuNet. "Hiring activity was unseasonably strong in the fourth quarter of 2006. We saw this in our network's job listings and in the number of searches of our executive resume talent bank. The fastest growing segment of executives joining our organization is passive candidates who want to learn more about competitive salaries and opportunities."
Demand for executive talent rose sharply in 2006. Executive recruiters reported a 23% increase in the number of search assignments they received from corporate clients during the year – this represents the largest increase since the height of the dot-com boom in 2000. Looking ahead to 2007, search firms are forecasting a 26% increase in executive-level job opportunities.
Recruiters' short-term outlook also improved in December, as 82% said they are confident or very confident the employment market will improve in the next three months – up from 77% in the previous month. This bullish assessment of the executive employment market is well supported by the executive search industry's own expansion. In December, 60% of all search firms reported plans to hire additional professional staff during the next three months, which is considerably higher than the number of firms that added staff during the past three months (40%).
"Every day, the executive recruiters who use our service tell us that companies are increasingly turning to them for help as it becomes more and more difficult to find and attract talent," says Anderson.
ExecuNet, the leading executive career, business and recruiting network, provides exclusive access to high-level business connections for professionals, confidential six-figure job listings, expert advice and proprietary research while helping corporate and search firm recruiters find qualified executive candidates. Founded in 1988, ExecuNet helped transform the executive recruiting industry by launching the first website designed to bring senior-level professionals and search firms together in a cooperative, confidential environment to understand how to meet their human capital needs.
Based in Norwalk, Connecticut, ExecuNet is a recognized authority in executive recruiting trends and proprietary employment market research. For more information, visit www.execunet.com.
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