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Benefits July 7, 2010
Forty Percent of Execs See Future Hiring Hikes
July 7, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – Forty percent of executives surveyed anticipate an increase in hiring over the next 12 months, while 22% predict a hiring cutback, according to an Ernst & Young survey.
Reported by Fred Schneyer
A news release said 52% of senior executives indicate their expected hiring increase this year will be from “new growth,” while 48% indicate that it is more a “return to pre-economic downturn levels.”
Other poll findings include:
- Hiring is projected to focus on skilled professionals (68%), entry level (45%) and middle management (39%).
- Eighty percent of the hiring will be in the U.S.
- The barriers to hiring expressed by the respondents focus far less on economic uncertainty (only 8% said this is their biggest barrier), but more on finding qualified candidates (22%).
- Of those companies not planning to hire new employees this year, more say they need to see increased revenue (42%) or an improving economy (27%) before they will consider hiring again.
“Job growth – not just maintenance – represents a turning point from the past 12 months,” said Maria Pinelli, Americas Director, Strategic Growth Markets, Ernst & Young, in the news release. “The largest of these growth companies – over $1 billion in revenue – are even more positive, with 46% projecting hiring increases. With so many companies looking to hire, we foresee a substantial contribution to the overall economy. Growth companies and entrepreneurs could represent significant engines to push jobs in the right direction.”
The Ernst & Young Strategic Growth Markets Growth Company Leadership survey was conducted in April 2010 and represents responses from 349 senior-level executives at U.S. public and private firms, with $500 million to $3 billion in total revenue.