Recruitment Index 2025

Thank you for agreeing to take part in The Recruitment Index, the UK’s only financial benchmarking survey of recruitment and executive search businesses. This survey is being carried out jointly by APSCo and Saffery.

This survey consists of over 30 questions, many of which require very specific pieces of financial information in a certain format. Depending on your business size, we anticipate you may need the input of multiple members of your leadership team. To make it easier to collate and co-ordinate the collection of information, you can download a copy of the questions from this survey in a PDF format here, so you can return to this online questionnaire with all the data you need to hand.

But why should I go to all this effort?
The Recruitment Index is the only survey of its kind in the industry and the only true ‘benchmarking’ opportunity. Only those organisations that complete the survey will be given access to the insightful benchmarking data.

Please note that the data you provide will remain completely confidential, but will be shared and processed by APSCo and Saffery for the purposes of compiling this survey. The data used in the survey will be anonymised.

You can view the Saffery privacy policy here.

You can view the APSCo privacy policy here.

The deadline for responses is Friday 28 March.

ABOUT YOU AND YOUR ORGANISATION

1. Your name *

2. Your organisation *

3. Email address *

4. Job title/role *

5. Are you an APSCo Member? *

OPERATIONAL TOPICS

6. What was your net fee income for your last 12 months of trading (or registered accounts in 2024)?
For permanent recruitment this is the total fees charged to clients, for contract/interim - the net fee income is gross margin/gross profit (revenue less contractor salaries) *

7. For your last 12 months trading, what was your net fee income from: *

	Less than £2m	£2m to £10m	£10m to £50m	£50m to £100m	> £100m	N/A
Contract/temporary	Contract/temporary Less than £2m	Contract/temporary £2m to £10m	Contract/temporary £10m to £50m	Contract/temporary £50m to £100m	Contract/temporary > £100m	Contract/temporary N/A
Contingent permanent	Contingent permanent Less than £2m	Contingent permanent £2m to £10m	Contingent permanent £10m to £50m	Contingent permanent £50m to £100m	Contingent permanent > £100m	Contingent permanent N/A
Executive search	Executive search Less than £2m	Executive search £2m to £10m	Executive search £10m to £50m	Executive search £50m to £100m	Executive search > £100m	Executive search N/A
Recruitment process outsourcing (RPO)/Managed service provider (MSP)	Recruitment process outsourcing (RPO)/Managed service provider (MSP) Less than £2m	Recruitment process outsourcing (RPO)/Managed service provider (MSP) £2m to £10m	Recruitment process outsourcing (RPO)/Managed service provider (MSP) £10m to £50m	Recruitment process outsourcing (RPO)/Managed service provider (MSP) £50m to £100m	Recruitment process outsourcing (RPO)/Managed service provider (MSP) > £100m	Recruitment process outsourcing (RPO)/Managed service provider (MSP) N/A

8. Please indicate your productivity per head in terms of net fee income (per billing consultant/recruitment type).

Enter to the nearest thousand - do not include £ or , or K in your answer (if not applicable enter 0) *

Contract/temporary	*
Contingent permanent	*
Executive search	*

9. Please provide your current base salary bands (eg 30000-45000) and typical variable bonus or commission bands (eg 4000-15000) to the nearest thousand.
Do not include £ or , or K in your answer (if not applicable enter 0) *

	Base salary	Bonus
Resourcer	Resourcer Base salary	Resourcer Bonus
Junior consultant	Junior consultant Base salary	Junior consultant Bonus
Senior consultant	Senior consultant Base salary	Senior consultant Bonus
Team leader/first line management	Team leader/first line management Base salary	Team leader/first line management Bonus
Manager	Manager Base salary	Manager Bonus
Senior manager	Senior manager Base salary	Senior manager Bonus
Director	Director Base salary	Director Bonus
Board director	Board director Base salary	Board director Bonus

10. For your last 12 months trading, what was the average gross margin % on the revenue from contract/temporary placements?
Please input a whole number with no % symbol (if not applicable enter 0) *

11. For your last 12 months trading, what was the average fee from permanent placements?
Please input a whole number with no % symbol (if not applicable enter 0) *

EMPLOYEE TOPICS

12. On average, how long (in months) does it take to recover a recruiter's salary on the net fee income/gross profit they generate for (if not applicable enter 0): *

Contract/temporary	*
Contingent permanent	*
Executive search	*

13. What percentage (%) of net fee income/gross profit is paid to your fee earners and resourcers (payments to include salary, NIC, commission and bonus)
Please input a whole number with no % symbol (if not applicable enter 0) *

Contract/temporary	*
Contingent permanent	*
Executive search	*

14. What is the overall staff attrition rate (%) across your business?
Please input a whole number with no % symbol (if not applicable enter 0) *

15. In terms of staff attrition, what % of recruiters leave in less than 12 months?
Please input a whole number with no % symbol (if not applicable enter 0) *

16. To what extent is diversity and inclusion (D&I) embedded in your business?
10 being fully embedded, 1 is not embedded at all *

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
D&I is a key business imperative	D&I is a key business imperative 1	D&I is a key business imperative 2	D&I is a key business imperative 3	D&I is a key business imperative 4	D&I is a key business imperative 5	D&I is a key business imperative 6	D&I is a key business imperative 7	D&I is a key business imperative 8	D&I is a key business imperative 9	D&I is a key business imperative 10
Executive compensation is linked to D&I goals	Executive compensation is linked to D&I goals 1	Executive compensation is linked to D&I goals 2	Executive compensation is linked to D&I goals 3	Executive compensation is linked to D&I goals 4	Executive compensation is linked to D&I goals 5	Executive compensation is linked to D&I goals 6	Executive compensation is linked to D&I goals 7	Executive compensation is linked to D&I goals 8	Executive compensation is linked to D&I goals 9	Executive compensation is linked to D&I goals 10
Our business leaders are accountable for D&I KPIs	Our business leaders are accountable for D&I KPIs 1	Our business leaders are accountable for D&I KPIs 2	Our business leaders are accountable for D&I KPIs 3	Our business leaders are accountable for D&I KPIs 4	Our business leaders are accountable for D&I KPIs 5	Our business leaders are accountable for D&I KPIs 6	Our business leaders are accountable for D&I KPIs 7	Our business leaders are accountable for D&I KPIs 8	Our business leaders are accountable for D&I KPIs 9	Our business leaders are accountable for D&I KPIs 10
We have an organisation-wide D&I strategy	We have an organisation-wide D&I strategy 1	We have an organisation-wide D&I strategy 2	We have an organisation-wide D&I strategy 3	We have an organisation-wide D&I strategy 4	We have an organisation-wide D&I strategy 5	We have an organisation-wide D&I strategy 6	We have an organisation-wide D&I strategy 7	We have an organisation-wide D&I strategy 8	We have an organisation-wide D&I strategy 9	We have an organisation-wide D&I strategy 10
We provide D&I training for leaders	We provide D&I training for leaders 1	We provide D&I training for leaders 2	We provide D&I training for leaders 3	We provide D&I training for leaders 4	We provide D&I training for leaders 5	We provide D&I training for leaders 6	We provide D&I training for leaders 7	We provide D&I training for leaders 8	We provide D&I training for leaders 9	We provide D&I training for leaders 10

17. What average (basic) pay rise increase did you incorporate into your last annual pay review? *

18. Do you expect to give pay increases this year given the changes to employer National Insurance? *

Yes
No
Don't know

SECTOR/REGION-SPECIFIC TOPICS

19. In which locations does your company operate?
Choose all that apply *

20. If planning to expand overseas in the next 12-24 months, which regions are of most interest?
Choose all that apply *

21. For each sector, what was the average timesheet value on contract and/or interim placements?
Please input a round number in £s for all that apply. Do not include £ or , or K in your answer (if not applicable enter 0) *

Accounting and finance	*
Banking and insurance	*
Blue collar and industrial	*
Business admin, support and HR	*
Education	*
Engineering and technical	*
Healthcare and social workers	*
IT	*
Legal services	*
Media and marketing	*
Other professional services	*
Pharmaceuticals	*
Utilities and energy	*

Other (please specify sector and £)

22. For each sector, what was the average permanent placement fee?
Please input a round number in £s for all that apply. Do not include £ or , or K in your answer (if not applicable enter 0) *

Accounting and finance	*
Banking and insurance	*
Blue collar and industrial	*
Business admin, support and HR	*
Education	*
Engineering and technical	*
Healthcare and social workers	*
IT	*
Legal services	*
Media and marketing	*
Other professional services	*
Pharmaceuticals	*
Utilities and energy	*

Other (please specify sector and £)

23. For each sector, what was the average fee per placement on executive search placements?
Please input a round number in £s for all that apply. Do not include £ or , or K in your answer (if not applicable enter 0) *

Accounting and finance	*
Banking and insurance	*
Blue collar and industrial	*
Business admin, support and HR	*
Education	*
Engineering and technical	*
Healthcare and social workers	*
IT	*
Legal services	*
Media and marketing	*
Other professional services	*
Pharmaceuticals	*
Utilities and energy	*

Other (please specify sector and £)

STRATEGIC TOPICS

24. Has your appetite for a business sale increased or decreased over the next 12 months? *

Increased
No change
Decreased

25. If your appetite for a business sale has increased, what are the key drivers for this?
Please tick all that apply *

As part of succession planning
Due to plans for retirement
Economic factors
The potential for a further capital gains tax rate increase
To access capital for expansion
To return to profitability
Other (please specify):

26. Which of these challenges do you face?
Please tick all that apply *

27. What are your feelings about the future... *

	Very positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very negative
Economic outlook for the UK recruitment sector	Economic outlook for the UK recruitment sector Very positive	Economic outlook for the UK recruitment sector Positive	Economic outlook for the UK recruitment sector Neutral	Economic outlook for the UK recruitment sector Negative	Economic outlook for the UK recruitment sector Very negative
Economic outlook for the global recruitment sector	Economic outlook for the global recruitment sector Very positive	Economic outlook for the global recruitment sector Positive	Economic outlook for the global recruitment sector Neutral	Economic outlook for the global recruitment sector Negative	Economic outlook for the global recruitment sector Very negative

Please use this space to provide more information on your views about the outlook for the UK recruitment sector

28. How is your business using AI? *

We haven't consciously used it
We have tried one or two things
We have business initiatives to trial specific tools
We are integrating it into our business
It's demonstrating tangible benefits

If you have any further comments on your AI journey, we would be interested to hear your thoughts

29. Where do you anticipate/where are you seeing the benefits of AI in recruitment operations?
Please tick all that apply. The examples are not limited; they are just a means of explanation *

Candidate sourcing & attraction (eg job posting, screening)
Assessment & screening (eg initial screening and assessment analysis tools)
Candidate experience & communication (eg interview scheduling, personalised comms)
Compliance & risk management (eg background check automation, document verification)
Process & operations (eg performance tracking, workflow automation)
Client management/relations (eg data/market intelligence, automated reporting)
Back office & internal ops (eg data management, finance support, marketing activities)
Other (please specify):

30. How do you see your spend on new technology changing over the coming year? *

31. What are the primary drivers for your organisation’s sustainability efforts?
Please rank in order of importance: 1 being most important and 9 being least important *

Brand reputation and marketing
Corporate social responsibility
Cost savings
Demand from clients
Employee engagement
Investor requirements
Pressure from competitors
Regulatory compliance
Value adding opportunities for growth

Other (please specify)

32. If you have a planned training budget, where will you likely spend it this year? *

Other (please specify)

33. In a few words please state the biggest areas impacting your business (both positively and negatively). *

Positively
Negatively

Thank you for completing the Recruitment Index survey. We appreciate that it will have taken some time to compile and input all of the relevant information. The data you have provided will be analysed and a copy of the final benchmarking report will be sent to all respondents in due course.

34. If someone else in your company would like to receive the final report, please add their name and email address:

Name
Email address
Job title

Recruitment Index 2025

1. Your name *

2. Your organisation *

3. Email address *

4. Job title/role *

5. Are you an APSCo Member? *

6. What was your net fee income for your last 12 months of trading (or registered accounts in 2024)?For permanent recruitment this is the total fees charged to clients, for contract/interim - the net fee income is gross margin/gross profit (revenue less contractor salaries) *

7. For your last 12 months trading, what was your net fee income from: *

8. Please indicate your productivity per head in terms of net fee income (per billing consultant/recruitment type). Enter to the nearest thousand - do not include £ or , or K in your answer (if not applicable enter 0) *

9. Please provide your current base salary bands (eg 30000-45000) and typical variable bonus or commission bands (eg 4000-15000) to the nearest thousand.Do not include £ or , or K in your answer (if not applicable enter 0) *

10. For your last 12 months trading, what was the average gross margin % on the revenue from contract/temporary placements?Please input a whole number with no % symbol (if not applicable enter 0) *

11. For your last 12 months trading, what was the average fee from permanent placements? Please input a whole number with no % symbol (if not applicable enter 0) *

12. On average, how long (in months) does it take to recover a recruiter's salary on the net fee income/gross profit they generate for (if not applicable enter 0): *

13. What percentage (%) of net fee income/gross profit is paid to your fee earners and resourcers (payments to include salary, NIC, commission and bonus) Please input a whole number with no % symbol (if not applicable enter 0) *

14. What is the overall staff attrition rate (%) across your business? Please input a whole number with no % symbol (if not applicable enter 0) *

15. In terms of staff attrition, what % of recruiters leave in less than 12 months?Please input a whole number with no % symbol (if not applicable enter 0) *

16. To what extent is diversity and inclusion (D&I) embedded in your business? 10 being fully embedded, 1 is not embedded at all *

17. What average (basic) pay rise increase did you incorporate into your last annual pay review? *

18. Do you expect to give pay increases this year given the changes to employer National Insurance? *

19. In which locations does your company operate? Choose all that apply *

20. If planning to expand overseas in the next 12-24 months, which regions are of most interest?Choose all that apply *

21. For each sector, what was the average timesheet value on contract and/or interim placements? Please input a round number in £s for all that apply. Do not include £ or , or K in your answer (if not applicable enter 0) *

22. For each sector, what was the average permanent placement fee?Please input a round number in £s for all that apply. Do not include £ or , or K in your answer (if not applicable enter 0) *

23. For each sector, what was the average fee per placement on executive search placements? Please input a round number in £s for all that apply. Do not include £ or , or K in your answer (if not applicable enter 0) *

24. Has your appetite for a business sale increased or decreased over the next 12 months? *

25. If your appetite for a business sale has increased, what are the key drivers for this?Please tick all that apply *

26. Which of these challenges do you face? Please tick all that apply *

27. What are your feelings about the future... *

28. How is your business using AI? *

29. Where do you anticipate/where are you seeing the benefits of AI in recruitment operations? Please tick all that apply. The examples are not limited; they are just a means of explanation *

30. How do you see your spend on new technology changing over the coming year? *

31. What are the primary drivers for your organisation’s sustainability efforts? Please rank in order of importance: 1 being most important and 9 being least important *

32. If you have a planned training budget, where will you likely spend it this year? *

33. In a few words please state the biggest areas impacting your business (both positively and negatively). *

34. If someone else in your company would like to receive the final report, please add their name and email address:

6. What was your net fee income for your last 12 months of trading (or registered accounts in 2024)?
For permanent recruitment this is the total fees charged to clients, for contract/interim - the net fee income is gross margin/gross profit (revenue less contractor salaries) *

8. Please indicate your productivity per head in terms of net fee income (per billing consultant/recruitment type).

Enter to the nearest thousand - do not include £ or , or K in your answer (if not applicable enter 0) *

9. Please provide your current base salary bands (eg 30000-45000) and typical variable bonus or commission bands (eg 4000-15000) to the nearest thousand.
Do not include £ or , or K in your answer (if not applicable enter 0) *

10. For your last 12 months trading, what was the average gross margin % on the revenue from contract/temporary placements?
Please input a whole number with no % symbol (if not applicable enter 0) *

11. For your last 12 months trading, what was the average fee from permanent placements?
Please input a whole number with no % symbol (if not applicable enter 0) *

13. What percentage (%) of net fee income/gross profit is paid to your fee earners and resourcers (payments to include salary, NIC, commission and bonus)
Please input a whole number with no % symbol (if not applicable enter 0) *

14. What is the overall staff attrition rate (%) across your business?
Please input a whole number with no % symbol (if not applicable enter 0) *

15. In terms of staff attrition, what % of recruiters leave in less than 12 months?
Please input a whole number with no % symbol (if not applicable enter 0) *

16. To what extent is diversity and inclusion (D&I) embedded in your business?
10 being fully embedded, 1 is not embedded at all *

19. In which locations does your company operate?
Choose all that apply *

20. If planning to expand overseas in the next 12-24 months, which regions are of most interest?
Choose all that apply *

21. For each sector, what was the average timesheet value on contract and/or interim placements?
Please input a round number in £s for all that apply. Do not include £ or , or K in your answer (if not applicable enter 0) *

22. For each sector, what was the average permanent placement fee?
Please input a round number in £s for all that apply. Do not include £ or , or K in your answer (if not applicable enter 0) *

23. For each sector, what was the average fee per placement on executive search placements?
Please input a round number in £s for all that apply. Do not include £ or , or K in your answer (if not applicable enter 0) *

25. If your appetite for a business sale has increased, what are the key drivers for this?
Please tick all that apply *

26. Which of these challenges do you face?
Please tick all that apply *

29. Where do you anticipate/where are you seeing the benefits of AI in recruitment operations?
Please tick all that apply. The examples are not limited; they are just a means of explanation *

31. What are the primary drivers for your organisation’s sustainability efforts?
Please rank in order of importance: 1 being most important and 9 being least important *