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Stuart Gentle Publisher at Onrec

EMEA recruitment sector on the up claims new Bullhorn report

But respondents cite lack of quality candidates as a concern

Recruiters across EMEA are optimistic about the year ahead and had a good 2011 according to the latest annual Bullhorn staffing and recruiting trends report, released today.

Key findings include 61 per cent reporting that their firms either met or exceeded their 2011 revenue goals; 88 per cent believing their firm’s revenue will increase in 2012; and more than four out of five respondents (89 per cent) planning to increase their headcount in 2012.

Social media stole the spotlight this year with every agency in the EMEA region reporting some use. Almost every respondent claimed to use LinkedIn (98 per cent), with around half using Twitter (52 per cent) and Facebook (43 per cent), a fifth claiming they use Google+ for business and 11 per cent actively blogging.

While an expectedly high proportion (91 per cent) claim LinkedIn as the most effective tool for generating candidates, half of businesses also claimed social media was crucial for building an agency’s brand.

Peter Linas, Bullhorn’s EMEA MD says: “Given all the doom and gloom about the global economy, the recruitment sector seems to be ably bucking the trend. Around half of those surveyed actually received a salary rise last year and most of them see their compensation increasing in 2012 as well.

 “Social media was high on the agenda again and we expect it to retain its topicality until the recruitment sector has developed associated best practices. A lot of firms approach us struggling to manage their recruiters’ disparate social media usage, but we’re beginning to see a pattern in companies taking control and leveraging its potential to increase their total number of placements. This is becoming ever more important as recruiters would appear concerned that social media is allowing in-house teams to increase their recruitment efforts.”   

Challenges for the coming year in the region include continued economic uncertainty and the increasing difficulty associated with sourcing high quality candidates. Linas continues: “While the overall picture is an optimistic one, there are still reservations. Some respondents cited global economic uncertainty and firms downsizing as a cause for concern, while others detailed the lack of resources for finding ‘skilled and experienced’ candidates as a major issue. This would suggest that the emphasis on developing social media skills will remain a high priority as this is a proven way of unearthing talent.”    

A Rising Tide: Bullhorn 2012 Recruitment Trends Report EMEA looks at how agencies across the region measure success, their candidate sourcing strategies, client development trends, social media’s impact on recruitment, compensation trends and challenges and opportunities over the coming year. The full report with further statistical breakdown and graphical analysis is available for download here.