46% of Recruitment Agency Leaders ‘Optimistic’ About 2021

We surveyed SME recruitment agencies across the UK to gather a picture of what the future looks like for the industry.

The results show a positive picture: Agencies are adapting well to the Covid-19 recruitment landscape and around half of agency owners are feeling optimistic about the next 12 months.

Some highlights from the survey:

• Almost half of UK recruitment agency owners are optimistic about the next 12 months, and agencies of 1-5 recruiters are more optimistic than larger agencies
• 40% of agency owners expect positive sales and 30% expect revenue to return to pre-Covid-19 levels as early as Q1 2021
• 35% of recruitment agencies plan to increase focus in Technology sector, as Tech industry grows as a result of the pandemic
• 32% of agencies are ramping up their Exec Search, as highly-paid roles are least at risk due to Covid-19.

It’s great to see things looking optimistic in the face of a challenging job market and redundancies being made nationwide.

SME recruitment agencies expect better results in 2021

The survey, titled ‘The Future of the UK SME Recruitment Industry’ reveals a more positive picture for smaller agencies.

Agencies with 1-5 employees were 6% more optimistic about the next 12 months and 6% more likely to expect positive sales growth (42% vs. 35%) than the rest of the market.

Overall, 30% of agency owners expect their revenue to return to pre-Covid-19 levels as early as Q1 2021. This is an indication that the recruitment industry has been the first to get hit, but will be the first to recover - a trend we’ve seen with happen in past recessions.

Adapting to the new recruitment landscape

The survey also painted a clear picture of how recruitment agencies in the UK are planning to adapt their business plans and models to suit the new landscape.

35% of agency owners are increasing their focus on the Tech sector as Technology businesses continue to grow in spite of – and even as a result of – the pandemic.

In light of the news that highly-paid jobs are the least at risk due to Covid-19, 32% of agencies are ramping up their Exec Search. Nearly half of all respondents plan to scale up their temp desks in response to changes in the job market too.

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