Recruitment Statistics - Annual Summary 2023
Job Flow Index
The Firefish Job Flow Index allows you to explore recruitment statistics drawn from over 750 recruitment agencies.
There was significant growth in the number of placements made in the construction sector in 2023 and a peak of permanent placements 152% above average in September.
Temp and contract placements in the technology sector enjoyed 6 months of steady growth between May and October, increasing by 136% over this period.
Temp and contract placements in sales and digital marketing decreased by 64% in the second half of the year.
Recruitment Overview 2023
Total placements made increased by 22% in 2023. This increase was led by the strong growth of contract and temp placements, which increased by 47%. Permanent placements, however, decreased by 21% YOY.
Whilst the total number of placements increased significantly, the total number of jobs created only increased by 2% in 2023 vs 2022. There was a decrease of 16% in the number of permanent jobs created in 2023. In the UK there has been rising unemployment throughout 2023 which reached 4.2% in September vs the YOY comparison of 3.6%.
Placements by sector
Permanent placements in the professional services sector increased steadily throughout 2023. The final 6 months of the year saw an 11% increase in placements on average.
Temp & contract placements in the professional services sector peaked in the winter months.
Professional Services
Finance & Accountancy
Permanent placements in the finance and accountancy sector remained steady in 2023.
Temporary and contract placements experienced significant peaks and troughs in this sector, fluctuating by as much as 46% MOM.
Technology
Permanent placements in the technology sector fluctuated by as much as 39% MOM in 2023.
Temporary & contract placements in the technology sector increased steadily between April and October, increasing by 136% over this period.
Placements
Explore monthly recruitment agency placement trends throughout 2023. Compare jobs created to placements made, and explore performance by sector.
Construction
Permanent placements in the construction sector have climbed steadily in 2023 after a dip in April, There was a significant peak in September with placements 152% above average.
Temporary & contract placements have been buoyant in the construction sector in 2023, peaking in August and growing steadily for 6 months from March.
Engineering, Manufacturing, Logistics & FMCG
Permanent placements in engineering, manufacturing, logistics & FMCG experienced a series of spikes over a steady baseline in 2023. January, June & September were strong months for permanent placements in this sector.
Temporary & contract placements in this sector decreased in the first quarter of 2023 before establishing and remaining very steady from June onwards.
Sales & Digital Marketing
Permanent placements in the sales & digital marketing sector peaked in March and April, remaining steady throughout the rest of the year.
Temporary and contract placements in sales & digital marketing decreased steadily in the final 7 months of the year, declining by 64%.
The Engagement Engine for
Recruitment Agencies.
"Firefish reports dashboards make it easy to run reports on anything in our CRM. We can monitor recruiters' activities, track business progress and compare trends to previous years."
- James C, Optima Site Solutions
Jobs created and number of placements
In 2023 61% of jobs created were placed. There was a 2% increase in the number of jobs created in 2023 vs 2022, and a 6% increase vs 2021.
There was a 16% decrease in the number of permanent jobs created in 2023 vs 2022, and a 16% decrease vs 2021. In 2023 24% of permanent jobs created were placed.
There was a 43% increase in the number of temp & contract jobs created in 2023 vs 2022, and a 42% increase vs 2021.
Recruitment Marketing
Explore the monthly recruitment agency marketing trends throughout 2023.
Application Source
The source of applications for your agency's job is a good indicator of the strength of your agency's brand presence and candidate loyalty. Over one-third (35%) of applications to Firefish clients' jobs came from candidates who already existed in their recruitment CRM in 2023.
Increasing the volume of applications from candidates who are already in your system reduces costs and time to fill.
Job Adverts
This chart shows the number of new job adverts posted each month across all sectors and platforms. Multiple adverts can be posted per job but indicates the volume of active adverts per month. The Office for National Statistics reported a 23% decrease in the number of active job ads in 2023 vs 2022. For recruitment agencies using Firefish, the decrease was lower at 12% YOY.
The number of quality applications per job has been higher throughout 2023 vs 2022.
Throughout 2023 there was a steady rate of 5 quality applications per job vs an average of 4 in 2022.
Quality Applications Per Job
Applications from re-engaged candidates
83% of applications from re-engaged candidates were generated by Job Alerts in 2023.
Candidate applications from web sources
67% of applications from web sources were generated by Job Boards in 2023.
The Engagement Engine for
Recruitment Agencies.
By utilising the reports dashboards on Firefish, Bright Purple's leadership team were able to identify that over a third of applications were coming from applicants already in their database - helping them to prioritise database engagement.
Spec CVs Sent
The sending of speculative CVs (when there is no formal role available) can indicate market confidence and business development activity. There was an 33% increase in the number of spec CVs sent in 2022 vs 2023.
Having peaked in January, the sending of spec CVs declined dramatically until April. From May onwards there was a steady use of spec CVs by recruitment agencies.
