The Executive Search industry, which offers external recruitment services for businesses looking to make top-level hires, has shown remarkable resilience in the face of macro-sized challenges – indicating that HR is still turning to recruitment experts to make hires at the apex of their business.
For hires above £200,000 the Executive Search market grew 5.8% over the period 2016/17 – 2017/18. For hires between £100,000 and £200,000 the hiring market grew 4.0%
This vastly outstrips growth for UK GDP which was 1.8% during 2017 and sat at 0.2% during the first quarter of 2018 and comes despite the oft-cited challenges that an impending Brexit and an ongoing skills shortage are posing – as well as the popularity of inhouse resourcing teams and the use of professional networking media, such as LinkedIn, when searching for new hires and roles.
Noting the Search industry’s excellent performance, Dave Heron, CEO, Wilton & Bain added that Search firms who were able to meet changing demand are primed to benefit.
He said: “The search market is generally good - particularly for firms that have international capability, and expertise in technology, and transformation."
"Every sector is looking to re-invent itself and demand for specific leadership capabilities to drive change is often out stripping supply.”
Alex Cormack, Group Managing Director, Sheffield Haworth also noted several reasons why Search is still doing well “From an industry perspective, clients are requesting more innovative, flexible and tailor-made solutions to their talent issues," he said.
"This is leading to high demand from our clients for advice and partnership around talent identification, executive search, succession planning and diversity and inclusion issues across all sectors and regions.”
James Isaacs, Consultant at Eric Salmon & Partners, explained that as firms are increasingly looking for top-level hires that can successfully grapple with this rapidly changing business landscape it might suggest why they’re choosing to increasingly retain the services of Search firms.
He told Executive Grapevine: “Hiring managers are keen to ensure they can find and retain senior leadership that can disrupt industries and business models but without creating internal chaos. It’s a balance between disrupting the market or just simply disrupting your employer.”
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