The jobs market within the executive search sector, which hit rock bottom in December 2008 with an almost complete hiring freeze due to the financial crisis, is now stabilising, according to research into the banking and finance sector by Cornhill Consultancy, the boutique executive search service.

Caroline Cooke, the founder of Cornhill Consultancy, said that while by December 2008 supply of consultants and researchers far outweighed the demand by banking recruitment companies, by March 2010 the pattern had reversed with demand far outweighing supply.

The recession first affected the sector in September 2008 with mass redundancies of consultants and researchers. The market was subsequently saturated with a vast supply of consultants and researchers by December 2008.

By January this year, some forward-thinking executive search and selection companies starting their hiring process by headhunting from their competitors. By the end of March 2009, other executive search companies followed this move.

“Since the market is now showing signs of recovery, we are inundated with demands from our clients and so have stepped up our efforts to attract talented consultants and researchers,” said Caroline Cooke.

There are several factors that have made the headhunting sector increasingly competitive since March 2009, Cornhill Consultancy said. This includes that the financial crisis has forced people to move into other career paths, which led to a lack of available individuals.

Furthermore, the consultants that remained in their current positions were offered more attractive packages elsewhere and, due to job instability, had consequently moved to their competitors earlier this year.

Lastly, those successful recruiters that remained in their current positions through the recession are now making commission, so it is very difficult to attract them elsewhere.

Cornhill Consultancy, which operates within the City, specialises in banking and finance recruitment.

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