State of Play in TA – EMEA & APAC Talent Acquisition Markets July 2020

Welcome to this month’s 2-minute read about the EMEA & APAC Corporate Talent Acquisition Market – July saw the return of interim Corporate Recruiters to their desks, some shifts in market rates and a path forward for contractors concerned about IR35 in the UK. We hope you enjoy our update! 

Corporate Recruiters – the ‘pulse’ of the economy

With the blanket lockdown largely at an end throughout Europe, we noted a general uptick in corporate requisitions during July and a return to work for many interim recruiters. July has been marked by a significant increase in activity (in comparison to the last three months) – particularly within the Pharmaceutical, Biotechnology and Management Consulting sectors.

Recently appointed contractors are all working from home. With few exceptions, our clients tell us that home working (for corporate functions) will remain in place for the balance of 2020.

We believe the ‘pulse’ of the economy, and to some extent recovery, can be measured by the demand for interim corporate recruiters relative to the gradual return to pre-pandemic corporate requisition levels.

EMEA & APAC

Enquiry Rates Up, but Day Rates Down

During July, we saw an increase (or ‘re-release’) in European requisitions (and interim in-house appointments) particularly in the UK, Netherlands and Germany.

Interim corporate recruitment daily/hourly rates are, however, lower than pre-pandemic times – we note a general discount of approximately 20% on rates across EMEA. Also, we have seen interim recruiters reappointed to previous assignments on a part-time basis. This is in line with some voluntary (and involuntary) pay rate reductions for permanent staff.

July also saw activity increase for corporate recruitment in APAC particularly within the Australian Management Consulting sector – we have provided in-house recruiters to our clients in Australia who have subsequently seconded them to their client projects within the region.

IR35 Update

Contrary to our previous view, it does seem that the UK Government will press ahead with the IR35 reforms due 6th April 2021. We are now seeing retainer and success fee contracts (where a portion of the in-house recruiter’s day rate is at financial risk) with the success criteria described in a Statement of Works. We also remind contractors that IR35 will not apply to assignments with international companies (outside the UK and where there is no UK subsidiary).

We remain a strong supporter of independent, professional corporate recruiters and will continue to work closely with our industry body APSCo concerning IR35.

Welcome Back!

After a 4-month hiatus, we warmly welcomed back many of our trusted corporate recruiters to assignments which were on hold – or new projects. Thank you also to our clients for their continued support.

If you are looking to expand your TA team, with either an interim or permanent corporate recruiter, then contact us today.