2
© 2016 Management Recruiters International, Inc. All rights reserved. Each ofce is independently owned and operated. An Equal Opportunity Employer.
A leader and innovator in search, recruitment and contract staffing worldwide.
SURVEY HIGHLIGHTS 3
JOB OPENINGS TODAY
What is Causing Job Openings? 4
THE MARKET
Is It a Candidate or Employer-Driven Market? 5
HIRING PRACTICES AND ISSUES
What Areas are Employers Making a Top Priority? 6
What is Holding Managers Back From Hiring? 7
What are the Most Common Issues to Identifying Qualied Talent? 7
JOB MOVE FACTORS
What is Most Important to Candidates Looking to Make a Job Move? 8
What is Most Attractive to Prospective Hires? 8
CONTRACT ENGAGEMENTS
How Often are Contract Engagements Being Considered? 9
OFFERS
How Many Interviews to Get an Offer? 10
How Long Does it Take to Get an Offer? 10
What Percentage of Job Offers were Rejected? 11
Why are Job Offers Rejected? (Recruiters) 12
Why are Job Offers Rejected? (Employers) 12
How Many Interviews Before Job Offer was Rejected? 13
How Much Time Between 1st Interview and Rejected Offer? 14
CONCLUSION 15
ABOUT THE STUDY 15
Click here to view the
ipbook summary
of the Recruiter &
Employer Sentiment
Study.
CONTENTS
3
© 2016 Management Recruiters International, Inc. All rights reserved. Each ofce is independently owned and operated. An Equal Opportunity Employer.
A leader and innovator in search, recruitment and contract staffing worldwide.
86%
62%
As global experts and leaders in the search and recruitment industry, MRINetwork recruiters conduct
searches every day in virtually every industry at the executive, managerial and professional level. They have
a keen awareness of the overall job market and the factors that affect it. In May, we once again conducted
the MRINetwork Recruiter Sentiment Survey across our approximately 600 worldwide ofces, to evaluate
the current employment landscape and to project its direction in the months ahead. To compare employer
perspectives with those of our recruiters, insight was also gained from a focus group of 54 human resources
professionals and hiring managers, across a variety of industries and regions across the globe.
Key Findings
• Eighty-six percent of our recruiters continue to feel the labor market is candidate-driven in 2016.
Employers also agree with this sentiment, with 62 percent saying top talent are driving employment within
their market segments.
• In the environment of the candidate-driven market, candidates condently reject undesirable job offers,
with recruiters and employers listing “accepted another offer” as the primary reason for offer objections.
• Despite plans for expansion, employers’ biggest challenge continues to be an inability to nd enough
skilled talent. Some of this is a result of companies being disconnected from what is most attractive
to candidates looking to make a job move. Compensation was the top pick among employers, while
recruiters selected advancement opportunities most often. While compensation is important to
candidates, immediate and long-term advancement opportunities are what drive talent to join a new
company, since improved compensation is implied with upward mobility.
• Candidates want to hear real examples of how an organization’s best employees have advanced.
Companies can demonstrate that upward mobility is a part of their culture by implementing career-
pathing – a process by which managers and their direct reports map out a long-term plan for the
employee’s incremental progression to new roles in the company. This can be an effective strategy to
engage and retain top performers, empowering them to drive their own careers.
SURVEY HIGHLIGHTS
Recruiters who feel it’s a
candidate-driven market
Employers who feel it’s a
candidate-driven market
4
© 2016 Management Recruiters International, Inc. All rights reserved. Each ofce is independently owned and operated. An Equal Opportunity Employer.
A leader and innovator in search, recruitment and contract staffing worldwide.
9%
7%
63%
39%
7%
0% 10% 20%30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
Other
Top grading workforce
Newly created positions
Vacancies from resignations or
terminations
Vacancies from retirement
Employers
5%
12%
62%
47%
17%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
Other
Top grading workforce
Newly created positions
Vacancies from resignatio
n
Vacancies from retirement
Recruiters
What is Causing Job Openings?
Survey Insight
• Based on year-over-year survey data, newly created positions and resignations continue to be the primary
reasons for job openings, signifying a stronger labor market in which employers are focused on business
expansion and candidates feel more condent about changing roles.
• Vacancies from retirement were included for the rst time by recruiters as one of the top three reasons
for job openings. This is likely because recruiters are interacting with a wider range of candidates and
companies than employers who may be only considering hiring activities at their own organization.
Recruiter Comments
• There’s a mixture of new positions and vacancies from resignations and retirements.
• Many companies are expanding or have an increase in business which is creating a demand for quality
candidates.
• Recent hires have focused on lling strategic roles and upgrading talent, especially in industries like
healthcare where the environment is changing.
JOB OPENINGS TODAY
Q1. What has been the primary reason(s) for job openings in 2016?
Newly created positions continue to be the primary reason for job openings, followed by vacancies from resignations.
5
© 2016 Management Recruiters International, Inc. All rights reserved. Each ofce is independently owned and operated. An Equal Opportunity Employer.
A leader and innovator in search, recruitment and contract staffing worldwide.
62%
38%
0%
10
%
20
%
30
%
40
%
50
%
60
%
70
%
Employers
86%
14%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
Recruiters
Is It a Candidate or Employer-Driven Market?
Recruiter Comments
• It depends on the market. In banking, Chicago in particular is an employer-driven market. In a lot of the
smaller markets, it’s a candidate-driven market.
• It’s exceptionally candidate-driven. Candidates nd jobs quickly and want to hold off for multiple offers.
• The candidate has the ability to take control of their own future more so now than ever before.
• Candidates have multiple opportunities so it’s very important that clients make decisions quickly if there
is an interest in the candidate.
• Clients are still having trouble nding good candidates that t their nancial budget, are taking forever to
hire, and then holding out for the perfect candidate.
• The best need to be “recruited”. They aren’t looking and are denitely not on job boards.
• Candidates are there, but relocation remains the biggest challenge.
• Finding candidates with the right skills/experience, in the right location, with the compensation is a daily
challenge.
Q2. If you had to choose one, how would you describe today’s labor market?
THE MARKET
A candidate-driven market
An employer-driven market
6
© 2016 Management Recruiters International, Inc. All rights reserved. Each ofce is independently owned and operated. An Equal Opportunity Employer.
A leader and innovator in search, recruitment and contract staffing worldwide.
4%
39%
13%
24%
20%
17%
35%
28%
0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45%
Other
Key strategic hires
More consideration to whether a role should
be direct hire or contract
Succession planning
Training
Career-pathing
Employee engagement and retention
Employer branding - building and promoting
a strong company culture
Employers
What Areas are Employers Making a Top Priority?
Q3. In 2016, what areas are you making a top priority?
Employers identied key strategic
hires, followed by employee
engagement and retention, and
employer branding as top priorities
in 2016.
To support a growing focus on
attracting and retaining top talent,
recruitment rms are expanding
their services to provide an
objective, consultative offering for
employer branding that will position
companies as employers of choice.
HIRING PRACTICES AND ISSUES
7
© 2016 Management Recruiters International, Inc. All rights reserved. Each ofce is independently owned and operated. An Equal Opportunity Employer.
A leader and innovator in search, recruitment and contract staffing worldwide.
6%
45%
23%
52%
8%
56
%
9%
0% 10%20% 30% 40%50% 60%
Other
Not offering competitive compensation
packages.
Hiring managers meet resistance in getting
authorization to fill their open positions.
Hiring managers are not finding enough
suitable candidates to fill open positions.
Not pr
omoting or offering career-pathing and
succession planning.
Lengthy hiring practices.
Absence of flexible work scheduling or
telecommuting options.
Recruiters
50%
30%
32%
11%
0%
10
%
20
%
30
%
40
%
50
%
60
%
Not finding
enough suitable
candidates to fill
open positions.
Difficulty finding
passive talent.
Too many
unqualified, junk
resumes from
job boards.
Other.
Employers
What is Holding Managers Back from Hiring?
Lengthy hiring practices
and an inability to nd
suitable talent ranked very
closely among recruiters,
demonstrating the
relationship between the time
to hire and the availability of
skilled candidates.
Other obstacles such as
offering low compensation
packages, and an inability to
get authorization to ll roles
lengthen the hiring process,
causing vacancies to remain
open longer.
Q4. What single factor, if you had to pick one aside from a company’s revenue, is keeping
employers from adding to their headcounts?
HIRING PRACTICES AND ISSUES
What are the Most Common Issues to Identifying Qualied
Talent?
Employers’ top concern is
that they are unable to nd
enough suitable candidates
to ll open positions.
Frustration with receiving
too many junk resumes
from job boards, solidies
the value that recruiters
bring by connecting hiring
authorities with top passive
talent.
Q5. What are the most common issues you face when identifying qualied talent?
8
© 2016 Management Recruiters International, Inc. All rights reserved. Each ofce is independently owned and operated. An Equal Opportunity Employer.
A leader and innovator in search, recruitment and contract staffing worldwide.
11%
57%
72%
6%
47%
7%
48%
20%
17%
6%
0% 10% 20%30% 40% 50%60% 70% 80
%
Other
Better compensation packages
Advancement opportunities
Training/continuing education
Improved work-life balance
Grea
ter access to emerging technology
Better company culture
Collaborative environment
Fun, engaging, company culture
Sense of camaraderie
Recruiters
2%
49%
40%
22%
42%
27%
38%
40%
38%
0% 10%20% 30%40% 50%60%
Other
Co
mpetitive compensation packages
Advancement opportunities
Training/continuing education
Emphasis on work-life balance
Access to emerging technology
Sense of camaraderie
Collaborative environment
Fun, engaging, company culture
Employers
What is Most Important to Candidates Looking to Make a
Job Move?
Top candidates that are looking
to make job moves are most
focused on jobs that can provide
advancement opportunities,
followed by improved compensation
packages.
This demonstrates that while
compensation is an important
deciding factor, job moves are
largely driven by the chance for
more responsibility and upward
mobility that typically result in
greater compensation. That said,
the opportunity must present a
reasonable work-life balance to be
considered worthwhile.
Q6. What is most important to candidates looking to make a job move in 2016?
JOB MOVE FACTORS
What is Most Attractive to Prospective Hires?
Choosing competitive
compensation most often,
employers appear to be
slightly disconnected from
what candidates prioritize
when considering a job move:
advancement opportunities.
Q7. What do you feel is most attractive to prospective hires about your company?
Q7. What do you feel is most attractive to prospective hires about your company?
9
© 2016 Management Recruiters International, Inc. All rights reserved. Each ofce is independently owned and operated. An Equal Opportunity Employer.
A leader and innovator in search, recruitment and contract staffing worldwide.
Yes
37%
No
37%
Depends on the
level and
strategic
objectives
of the role
26%
Employers
How Often are Contract Engagements Being Considered?
Sixty-three percent of employers said
they are either offering more contract
engagements, or are giving more
thought to them, based on the level
and requirements of the role.
As companies prioritize key strategic
hires, blended workforces that include
permanent hires and highly-skilled
contract employees are becoming
more common. Direct-hire employees
are no longer the only option for lling
strategic roles.
Q8. Do you anticipate more roles in your company being presented as contract/temporary
engagements?
CONTRACT ENGAGEMENTS
10
© 2016 Management Recruiters International, Inc. All rights reserved. Each ofce is independently owned and operated. An Equal Opportunity Employer.
A leader and innovator in search, recruitment and contract staffing worldwide.
12%
31%
40%
13%
4%
0% 20%40% 60%
One to two weeks
Three to four weeks
Five to six weeks
Seven to eight week
s
Nine or more weeks
1%
30%
48%
14%
6%
0% 20%40% 60
%
1
2
3
4
5
or more
How Many Interviews to Get an Offer?
How Long Does It Take to Get an Offer?
Q9. On average, over the last six months, how many interviews were there before an offer was made?
Q10. Generally, over the last six months … how much time was there
between when the candidate was rst interviewed and when an offer was
made?
Most job offers continue to come after
three interviews. This is consistent
with year-over-year survey data that
focuses on most recent placements.
MRINetwork recruiters report the
majority of job offers are being
presented between 3-6 weeks, a shift
from 1-4 weeks that we have observed
since the second half of 2015.
This may point to a trend toward
employers not heeding recruiters’
advice to expedite the interviewing and
hiring process, thereby increasing the
chances of top candidates moving on.
OFFERS
11
© 2016 Management Recruiters International, Inc. All rights reserved. Each ofce is independently owned and operated. An Equal Opportunity Employer.
A leader and innovator in search, recruitment and contract staffing worldwide.
23%
30%
21%
19%
7%
0% 5% 10% 15% 20%25% 30%35%
Less than
1 percent (0)
1-5 percent
6-10 percent
11-25 percent
More than 25 percent
What Percentage of Job Offers were Rejected?
Seventy-four percent of MRINetwork
recruiters report their offer rejections
are 10 percent or less, indicating
that top passive candidates are being
vetted well, with regards to a given job
opportunity.
OFFERS
Q11. Approximately what percentage of your candidates rejected offers over the last six months?
12
© 2016 Management Recruiters International, Inc. All rights reserved. Each ofce is independently owned and operated. An Equal Opportunity Employer.
A leader and innovator in search, recruitment and contract staffing worldwide.
8%
6%
47%
7%
26%
7%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%
Other
Accepted counteroffer
Accepted other job offer
Concerns over relocation
Salary/benefits package lower than expected
Changed mind about switching jobs
Recruiters
16%
39%
5%
25%
2%
11%
2%
30%
5%
16%
0% 5% 10%15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45%
Other
Accepted another job offer
Did not want to leave current employer
Took counteroffer
Inadequate or no relocation package
Lengthy hiring process
No flex
ible work scheduling or telecommuting
options
Compensation
Limited promotion or career-pathing
opportunities
Have not had a candidate reject an offer
Employers
Why are Job Offers Rejected?
Q12. Of offers that were rejected, what was the primary cause?
Employers and recruiters agree
that accepting another job offer
continues to be the leading reason
that job offers are turned down.
Lower-than-expected salary/
benets remains the 2nd most
common reason jobs offers are
rejected.
OFFERS
Q13. What are the most common reasons candidates reject your job offers?
13
© 2016 Management Recruiters International, Inc. All rights reserved. Each ofce is independently owned and operated. An Equal Opportunity Employer.
A leader and innovator in search, recruitment and contract staffing worldwide.
10%
5%
32%
37%
14%
3%
0% 5% 10%15% 20%25% 30%35% 40%
N/A - I had no
o
ffer rejections
1
2
3
4
5 or more
How Many Interviews Before Job Offer was Rejected?
Q14. How many interviews were there before the rejected offers were made?
Most job offers continue to be rejected after
2-3 interviews, based on our year-over-
year data.
OFFERS
14
© 2016 Management Recruiters International, Inc. All rights reserved. Each ofce is independently owned and operated. An Equal Opportunity Employer.
A leader and innovator in search, recruitment and contract staffing worldwide.
10%
12%
34%
26%
12%
6%
0% 5% 10%15% 20%25% 30%35% 40%
N/A - I had no offer rejection
s
One to two weeks
Three to four weeks
Five to six weeks
Seven to eight weeks
Nine or more weeks
How Much Time Between 1st Interview and Rejected Offer?
Recruiter Comments
• Despite this candidate-driven market, companies still are searching for the perfect candidate, and are
not willing to compromise secondary desired factors so they can get someone in the job that will be
productive.
• More companies are requesting help in preparing an offer that will be accepted.
• Interviewing processes are becoming extended with the offer-stage being the part of the process that
becomes delayed.
• Employers do not care if they are losing candidates because of the length of the process. They assume
there are many more candidates out there. Most clients do not realize that compensation is increasing for
top talent.
• Quit rates are up nationwide since candidates feel good about the economy, but they aren’t as willing to
relocate unless it’s to a place they want to live. Even candidates who have recently become unemployed
and live in very rural areas are not willing to move, because they know they’ll nd another comparable job
soon within a commuting distance of where they live.
• Many employers have not adjusted either their compensation package to compete with the changing
market or remain bogged down in a slow, arduous interview process.
Q15. On average, over the last six months … how much time was there between when the candidate was rst interviewed and when
the rejected offer was made?
Three to four weeks after the rst
interview continues to be the point at
which job offers are most frequently
rejected.
OFFERS
15
© 2016 Management Recruiters International, Inc. All rights reserved. Each ofce is independently owned and operated. An Equal Opportunity Employer.
A leader and innovator in search, recruitment and contract staffing worldwide.
Conclusion
Throughout 2016, despite some contractions in the labor market, hiring has continued to increase. As the
study results demonstrate that top performers are driving the hiring process in the executive, managerial
and professional space, employers in the overall labor market should also anticipate challenges with
recruitment and retention as the job market expands. Today’s best talent now seek an expedited, responsive,
candidate-facing interview process, that clearly outlines how their career would benet from joining your rm.
Companies that want to acquire and keep strong talent on their teams will need to embrace this.
As you look at your hiring plans for the rest of the year, use the survey ndings to help you understand
some of the pressure your candidate searches will be under. Of course, as you come up against challenges,
MRINetwork’s team of approximately 3,000 recruiters around the world will be able to help your organization
nd specialized managerial and executive talent in almost every industry and function.
About the Study
The MRINetwork Recruiter & Employer Sentiment Study is based on a web-based survey conducted between
May 3 - 17, 2016 with a total of 239 MRINetwork recruiters responding. A focus group of 54 human resources
professionals and hiring managers additionally provided insight. The survey has a 6.1 percent margin of error
with a 90 percent condence.
The survey was conducted by MRINetwork and compiled by Nysha King (215.282.8821 | nysha.king@
MRINetwork.com) of MRINetwork.
This was the 9th edition of the study. Parties interested in viewing the most recent report can download the
study at MRINetwork.com/Recruiter-Sentiment-Study.
