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Stuart Gentle Publisher at Onrec

Almost 1 in 2 HR & Resourcing professionals are unable to fill their specialist roles via their Preferred Supplier List, yet 64% admit that they have rejected a suitable candidate from a non-preferred agency

TheJobPost, the UK’s leading recruitment agency marketplace has completed the most comprehensive study of Preferred Supplier List effectiveness yet undertaken in the UK

  • A survey of 158 HR & Resourcing Professionals representing over 200,000 hires a year
  • 45% reported they struggled to find the specialist hires they needed via their Preferred
  • Supplier List
  • 64% of respondents had rejected a suitable candidate from a non-preferred agency,
  • suggesting that candidate suitability is directly linked to a Preferred Supplier List


TheJobPost, the UK’s leading recruitment agency marketplace has completed the most comprehensive study of Preferred Supplier List effectiveness yet undertaken in the UK.

With respondents comprising 158 HR & Resourcing Professionals representing over 200,000 hires per year, 45% reported the ongoing challenges relating to specialist hires; reporting that they struggled to find the hires they needed via their Preferred Supplier List. However, 64% of respondents had rejected a suitable candidate from a non-preferred agency, suggesting that candidate suitability in practise is directly linked to a Preferred Supplier List process.
Ken Brotherston, Chairman of TheJobPost says “‘We hear from employers time and time again that they’re struggling to identify the right specialist recruiter but the fact that HR & Resourcing professionals would reject suitable candidates simply because they don’t fit into the Preferred Supplier List process seems self-defeating.

Given the above it can’t be surprising that 63% of respondents stated that Hiring Managers regularly engage with recruitment agencies outside of a Preferred Supplier List and are projecting that in a highly candidate driven environment this ‘rogue behaviour’ will increase.

Brotherston continues “The irony of employers not letting good candidates in through the front door so line managers bring them in through the back door provides compelling evidence that organisations should not be overly reliant on their Preferred Supplier List. Hiring Managers will seek their own solutions – whether compliant or not! It’s time for a more dynamic way to access the increasing number of agencies in the market. Whilst a free for all would be unmanageable, technology is now enabling employers to gain access to the widest range of recruitment agencies but allowing them to do it in the most efficient manner that is both controlled and compliant.”

Download the full research report here: www.thejobpost.co.uk/research