90% senior executives now expect to work from home, according to recruitment research

• 76% of companies say hiring is no longer city-dependent due to COVID-19
• 77% of employers have already adjusted their Employee Value Proposition during COVID-19, and a further 16% plan to make changes
• Survey by Talent Works also reveals that 40% of recruitment budgets have increased during the pandemic to help companies fill roles

Boston, US; 6 April 2021: The pandemic has forced a recruitment rethink, according to a US-wide survey of hiring managers by Talent Works. With 90% of senior executives now expecting to work from home, remote working has removed location as a top hiring consideration, and 76% of US companies are more likely to hire out of city or out of state.

The research, which surveyed hiring managers across the US, also revealed that 40% of recruitment budgets have increased during the pandemic in response to 70% finding it more difficult to hire good quality candidates during the pandemic.

When it comes to attracting new hires, 77% of employers have adjusted their Employee Value Proposition (EVP) during the pandemic to reflect a change in candidates’ priorities, and a further 16% plan to make changes. Having a strong EVP is shown to boost new hire commitment and decrease annual employee turnover, while also establishing expectations amongst the workforce.

It’s a change that many industry experts have already begun to see: “Now more than ever, companies are going where the talent is, and hiring them to work remotely, not waiting for talent to come to them, to work in-person,” said Jenny Dearborn, Chief People Officer of Klaviyo. “Instead of hiring the best leader who’ll make the commitment to commute into an office every day, now we’re saying, let’s hire the best leader in our time zone, or in the country, or the world.”

Jody Robie, SVP and Shareholder, North America at Talent Works, commented: “In the US, the pandemic has fundamentally changed how businesses are attracting top talent in what has become an even more crowded market. Companies are reconsidering their recruitment strategies, and, as the research shows, with location less of an issue, many are casting their nets wider to capitalize on bigger talent pools in markets they may not have considered before. The majority of respondents indicated that they have also adjusted their EVPs and increased hiring budgets, and many are looking to outsourcing hiring during this exciting and challenging time so that they can stay laser focused on business growth.”

Hiring managers plan to use these budgets in a variety of ways, including using internal HR/recruiters (50%) and executive search firms (37%). The survey also found that hiring managers under 35 were more likely to use Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) teams (13%) than hiring managers over 35yr (2%).

The survey was conducted by Talent Works in March 2021. Over 200 US hiring managers were asked to answer a range of questions about budgets, priorities and staffing challenges and opportunities, and the impact of COVID to them over the last 12 months.