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Emma Musgrave
Exclusive research conducted by Momentum Intelligence, in partnership with Lawyers Weekly, has revealed that nearly half of all legal professionals surveyed would not approach a recruitment firm if they were looking to change jobs.
Exclusive research conducted by Momentum Intelligence, in partnership with Lawyers Weekly, has revealed that nearly half of all legal professionals surveyed would not approach a recruitment firm if they were looking to change jobs.
According to the Legal Firm of Choice Satisfaction Report 2016, 47.8 per cent of all legal professionals surveyed said they would not go to a recruitment firm if they were looking to shake up their career.
“This is somewhat surprising given candidates who are in the market could be missing out on opportunities that are not openly advertised by employers for various, and often confidential, reasons,” Ms Kirkby said.
“An explanation for this may be that lawyers tend to build their own networks and feel that they will be able to rely on those connections to source their own opportunities.
“Increasingly we are seeing many more senior candidates reaching out to us, as there are fewer opportunities in the market at their level. These candidates tend to be more open to contract roles that our clients find difficult to source for at short notice, and this is a trend that is likely to continue.”
Despite this result, the report also showed that 63.7 per cent of approaches to legal professionals were made by recruiters in 2016, up 9.6 percentage points from the corresponding period last year.
“This isn’t surprising in light of the fact that the legal sector is generally a candidate-short market, particularly at the mid-level experience level, i.e. 4 to 7 years PQE,” Ms Kirkby said.
“Employers are increasingly seeking candidates with particular experience levels to fit a very specified or narrow brief, and these candidates aren’t always actively searching for opportunities.
“As a result, employers are turning to agencies to assist with the recruitment of these ‘hard to fill’ positions in order to access a wider pool of candidates who have registered their interest in hearing about roles.”
The research for the Legal Firm of Choice Satisfaction Report 2016 was conducted during June and July 2016, with participants asked to complete a self-administered questionnaire via an online portal.
The questionnaire asked legal professionals how satisfied they are in their current role, which factors would be important in their decision to move firms, which firms they deem most attractive and which, if any, recruiters they may use for this process.
In total, 1,864 responses were received, with the data validation process resulting in a total usable sample of 1,561 legal professionals.
To find out more about the available reports from the Legal Firm of Choice 2016 research, contact Andrew Scott on 02 9922 3300 or via
Correction: The original version of this article suggested the majority of legal professionals are unlikely to engage a recruiter. This is incorrect and has been amended to reflect the correct amount, being almost half of legal professionals.
Emma Musgrave
Emma Musgrave (née Ryan) is the managing editor, professional services at Momentum Media.
Emma has worked for Momentum Media since 2015, including five years spent as the editor of the company's legal brand - Lawyers Weekly. Throughout her time at Momentum, she has been responsible for breaking some of the biggest stories in corporate Australia. In addition, she has produced exclusive multimedia and event content related to the company's respective brands and audiences.
Prior to joining Momentum Media, Emma worked in breakfast radio, delivering news to the Central West region of NSW, before taking on a radio journalist role at Southern Cross Austereo, based in Townsville, North Queensland.
She holds a Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) degree from Charles Sturt University.
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