Senior Executive Hiring on the Rise in Q3

November 9, 2010 – Worldwide senior executive hiring was on the increase in the third quarter of 2010, according to a report released by the Association of Executive Search Consultants (AESC). The yearly trend, from Q3 2009 to Q3 2010, was strong with both revenues and new search mandates rising across all regions and industry sectors (revenues +32 percent, new searches +18 percent). The quarterly trend, from Q2 2010 to Q3 2010, saw revenues increase by 2.4 percent, although the number of new searches declined (-5.3 percent). While the number of new searches started rose 18 percent annually, they fell five percent during the quarter. The quarterly picture of decreased searches but increased revenues indicates that AESC member executive search firms are working on a higher level of search assignment to position leaders at the very top of organizations. North America saw a 26 percent increase in search activity in the third quarter of 2010, against the same period a year ago, followed by Central/South America (+24.4 percent), Asia/Pacific (+14 percent), and Europe (+13 percent). “The third quarter statistics confirm the strong trends experienced since the beginning of 2010 and indicate a continuing resurgence in executive demand in many regions and sectors of the world,” said Peter Felix, president of the AESC. “The financial services and industrial sectors have shown the strongest growth, since they were the hardest hit by the recession and were the most likely to recover once the world trading system sprang back to life.”