TheLadders.com Executive Employment Outlook

With only 32,000 jobs added to American payrolls during the month of July, economists are voicing concerns over the
health of the economy. How are workers at the higher end of the pay scale interpreting the current job market? According to a survey conducted by executive job search service TheLadders.com, a majority of job seekers in the
$100k market are cautiously optimistic, saying they expect it will take them six months or less to land their next positions.

How long do you think it will take you to land your next job?

1-3 Months 30.4%
3-6 Months 34.6%
6-12 Months 23.4%
Over 12 Months 11.6%

Of the 1,171 executives surveyed, 34.6% say they expect their current job hunt to last between three and six months and 30.4% anticipate a one-to- three month search (see table above). Among the less optimistic executives, 23.4% expect a six-to-twelve month job search and 11.6% are preparing themselves for twelve months or more in the job market.

The survey of registered $100k executives was conducted on
TheLadders.com Web site from July 1, 2004 through July 31, 2004. The margin of error is 2.85%.

Despite the negative numbers seen in Friday’s Labor Department report, executive-level workers have kept a moderate level of optimism about the current job market, explained TheLadders.com founder and president, Marc Cenedella. Our readers, who represent a cross section of the nation’s top $100K talent, are eager to get back in the game but they realize that it’s still going to take some effort.

Now reaching over 120,000 readers, TheLadders.com has succeeded in this exclusive slice of the market by turning the traditional recruitment business model upside down: it does not accept money from hiring firms, recruiters, or recruitment advertising agencies. Each month, the TheLadders.com team of experts reviews over 160,000 jobs to select more than 10,000 jobs for inclusion in their weekly newsletters. The company searches the Internet
for job postings, or, alternatively, employers can list them free of charge a critical difference from traditional job boards because it enables TheLadders.com to list every appropriate $100k job opening on the market, not just paid listings.

This distinction allows TheLadders.com to filter out any questionable job listings that do not meet the company’s standards. TheLadders.com does not charge a fee for its basic job leads newsletter for job seekers. Instead, it
generates revenues by offering a premium service to job seekers, which includes a greater number of job listings, more detail, early delivery, and more features for $25 per month. TheLadders.com’s premium service fee keeps unqualified candidates out of the applicant pool and, thus, encourages employers to look at TheLadders.com applicants first.

Marc Cenedella founded TheLadders.com in July 2003 after a tenure as Senior Vice President, Finance & Operations, at HotJobs.com, ultimately shepherding that company’s sale to Yahoo, Inc. (NASD: YHOO) in 2002. In May 2004 he was named Entrepreneur of the Year by award-winning marketing newsletter, MarketingSherpa, which cited TheLadders.com’s unique business model as a key to its sustained growth.