NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--According to data just released by the Association of Executive Search Consultants (AESC), the first quarter of 2012 saw a small increase (+2.5%) in the number of new executive searches started as compared to the fourth quarter of 2011. However the overall trend was a decline in revenue, both on a quarter to quarter and year to year basis (-6.3% and -7% respectively). The technology and consumer industries showed strength, but other major industry groupings, such as the industrial and financial sectors, saw a drop in demand.
AESC President, Peter Felix, commented: “The first quarter results for our industry are disappointing but were presaged by our outlook survey conducted just before the start of the New Year. Many search consultants have felt continuing uncertainty in demand from their clients as economic turbulence persists in various parts of the world. Certain sectors such as financial have suffered considerably given that the outlook for banks and financial institutions still remains so unclear.”
Nevertheless most regions enjoyed a comparative quarter-on-quarter rise in new executive search activity in Q1 2012 from Q4 2011, including Central/South America (+10.6%), Asia Pacific (+6.3%), and North America (+3%). EMEA saw the number of new search mandates decline -1.4%, from Q4 2011.
Felix continued: “Quarterly statistics are only one indicator of a trend but there is no doubt that confidence in the executive search market has declined since the end of last year and is unlikely to fully recover until we see clients regain their confidence about the future and again start searching for that rare commodity: executive talent. I am confident that when the worldwide economy begins to grow again and the talent shortage begins to ‘bite’, that we shall see a significantly heightened demand for retained executive search services.”
A full copy of the AESC’s Q1 2012 report is available upon request to AESC members and the press.
The Association of Executive Search Consultants (AESC) represents the top retained executive search consulting firms around the world and promotes the highest professional standards in the industry. Visit http://www.aesc.org for more information about AESC, The International Executive Search Directory or BlueSteps, the AESC’s executive career management service.