Talent Attraction Study:

What Matters to theModern Candidate

“Research reveals the job
search never ends
The strengthening economy has
led to the tightest labor market inalmost seven years—more people
are employed and skilled candidates
are even harder to come by. This
creates a new reality for employers
and means we need to know whatthese qualified employees want andhow to attract them to new jobs.
But how are people searching forjobs today, and what influences theirdecisions? We enlisted help from
Harris Poll and The Polling Companyto answer these questions and more.
We found that 71% of people are
actively looking or open to a new job,and 90% of people hired within thepast year actively looked for a job

Tara M. Sinclair, PhD
Chief Economist, Indeed

All content © Indeed Inc. 2018

within six months prior to being hired.
Also, 65% look at new jobs again
within 91 days of starting a new job,leading us to believe that no one is“passive” about their career in 2015.
While the industry has traditionallybelieved employed candidates are“passive” and not actively lookingfor new jobs, many employers
have already moved on from thisnotion and dubbed it an antiquated
way of thinking. We hope thisresearch will help the modern talentacquisition organization understandthe vast opportunity to reachskilled candidates and the methods
they can use to attract them.

”

The modern workforce actively
seeks opportunity

90%

of employed adults
hired within the past
year took an action tofind a job six months
prior to being hired.
Only 10% received
a job offer withoutlooking at all.

Actions taken 6 months prior to current
job among the 90% hired in the past year
Visited an online job site

Looked at job opportunities on online job boards

Looked at job opportunities on company
career websites

Asked friends and/or family for a referral

Asked a professional connection for a referral

Visited an online professional social networking site

Used a mobile job search app

Attended job or career fairs

Enlisted the help of a recruiter
Source: Harris Poll
(Base=Employed but not self
employed and hired within thepast year, n=853)

2

Something else

49%
47%
46%
44%
29%
26%
25%
20%14%
11%

71% of people in the labor force
say they are actively looking oropen to a new job.
Source: Harris Poll (Base=Employed or not employed but looking, n=2,293)

65% of people look at new jobs

again within 91 days of being hired.
50% of people who make $100K – $110K lookat new jobs again within 28 days of being
Source: Indeed data3

The job search is always on

58%of adults look at jobs
at least monthly

How frequently people look at job opportunities
EverAt least monthly

Daily

WeeklyMonthly

YearlyLess often than yearly

Never looks at job opportunities

Source: Harris Poll (Base=Employed or not employed but looking, n=2,293)

481%
58%
18%
20%
19%
8%
15%
19%

People who actively look at job opportunities areyounger and better educatedAge of candidates who ever look at
job opportunities

Education level ofcandidates who everlook at job opportunities

90%

84%

75%

68%

62%

76%

81%

86%

18-34

35-44

45-54

55-64

65+

High schoolor less

Somecollege

BA orhigher

Source: Harris Poll (Base=Employed or not employed butlooking: 18-34, n=779; 35-44, n=426; 45-54, n=427; 55-64,n=486; 65+, n=175)

5Source: Harris Poll (Base=Employed or notemployed but looking: High school or less, n=592; Some college, n= 720; College graduate or
higher, n= 981)

Employees like to keep a pulseon the job market

72%

of employed adults agree it’s important
for them to be aware of jobs currently out
there in the market, regardless of whether
they are employed or not.

47%

Somewhat
agree

24%

Strongly
agree

9%Strongly
disagree19%

Somewhatdisagree

Source: Harris Poll (Base=Employed, n=1,997)00
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44%of adults subscribe
to job alerts.

Those with a college degree or more education(49%) are more likely to be currently subscribed tojob notifications than those who have some college
or less education (41%).

Source: Harris Poll (Base=Employed or not employed but looking, Somecollege or less education, n=1,701; College degree or more education, n=981)

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People are motivated toown their job search
Candidates are more confident in the jobs they find themselves,rather than jobs presented by a recruiter.

64%of employed
adults say they would
feel more confident thata job is the right fit forthem if they picked thecompany and applied
versus if a recruitercontacted them.1

52% say they thinkthey would be more
successful in a job theyfound on their own
versus one they got froma recruiter or company
that contacted them.1

1. Source: Harris Poll (Base=Employed, n=1,997)
2. Source: Harris Poll (Base=Employed or not employed but looking, n=2,293)

878% agree that

if a recruiter or friend
proactively contacted
them about a position,
they would consider
other available jobs aswell (rather than only thatspecific position).2

Compensation matters, butother factors play a role in a
candidate’s decision too
Salary, flexibility and location are the top three factors when
deciding to accept—or reject—a job offer.

Top 3 reasons candidates were most attracted to a new job

1

2

3

Good pay/compensation

Flexible hours

Good location

77%

54%

Source: Harris Poll (Base=Employed or not employed but looking, n= 2,293)

951%

People have higher salary
expectations when contacted
by a recruiter
Percentage of active candidates(who found a job and appliedthemselves) who expect a salary
increase* to accept a new job

Percentage of employed passivecandidates (who were first contacted
by a recruiter) who expect a salary
increase* to accept a new job

14%

28%

32%

51%

Not employed

Employed

If the new job isin the same city

If the new job
requires relocation*More than a 15% salary increase
Source: Harris Poll (Base=Employed, n=1,997; or not employed but looking, n=296)

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People exhibit generational and life-stage differences in theimportance they place on “meaningful work”

Selected meaningful work as factor that would most attract
them to a job

13%of employers say
it’s less expensive

87%

of employers say
it’s the same ofmore expensive

Source: The Polling Company (Base: n=1,000)

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Employers are aware of theperpetual job search

91%

of employers
agree

85%

“Highly skilled workers” are more
likely to be keeping an eye out on
new employment opportunities.

63%“Highly skilled workers” are more willingthan others to discuss job switches.

of employers
agreeof employers
agreeSource: The Polling Company (Base: n=1,000)00
12“People are always keeping an eye
out on the job market.”Why passive candidates may
not be the right fit
Lack of passion is the #1 reason that passive hires fail in the job

Reasons passive hires are not successful in their new roles
Lack of passion/commitment

Can’t adapt to position40%

Not a good fit

32%

Can’t adapt to culture31%

Doesn’t get along with management

9/10recruiters would prefer to hirean active candidate.
Top: Source: The Polling Company
Bottom: Source: The Polling Company (Base: n=1,000)

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51%

16%

Active candidates have astronger desire to succeed
once hired
Percentage of employers that feel active candidates have better
motivational drive to succeed

51%

say active candidates
have better
motivational drive41%

say passive and active
have the same
motivational drive8%

say passive candidates
have better
motivational drive

Source: The Polling Company (Base: n=1,000)00
1470%of talent acquisition leaders (directorsand VPs) feel active candidates are
more motivated to succeed.

Methodology
Harris Poll

The Polling Company

This survey was conducted online within
the United States from March 25-30,
2015, among 4,041 adults ages 18 andolder, among whom 2,293 employed or
unemployed job seekers (1,997 employed
adults and 296 unemployed job seekers),
by Harris Poll on behalf of Indeed via its
Quick Query omnibus product. A second
wave was conducted from April 27-30,
2015 among 4,025 U.S. adults ages
18 and older, among which 1,761 are
employed but not self employed and 461
are employed but not self employed andhired within the past year. Figures for age,sex, race/ethnicity, education, region andhousehold income were weighted where
necessary to bring them into line with
their actual proportions in the population.
Propensity score weighting was used toadjust for respondents’ propensity to beonline.

On behalf of Indeed, the polling company,inc. conducted a nationwide online
survey among 1,000 HR/Recruitment
professionals in the U.S. Interviews wereconducted April 6-10, 2015. Participants
were recruited through opt-in online
panels. Sampling controls ensured that a
proportional and representative numberof interviews were collected according tooverall company size. Small companies
represented 25% of the sample andMedium and Large represented 75%.
The survey measured HR/Recruitment
professionals who were active in recruiting
job applicants. The questionnaire
contained 28 inquiries in total, including
five demographic questions.

Respondents for this survey were selectedfrom among those who have agreed toparticipate in Harris Poll surveys. The
data have been weighted to reflect thecomposition of the adult population.
Because the sample is based on those
who agreed to participate in the Harris
Poll panel, no estimates of theoreticalsampling error can be calculated.

13The margin of error for the survey is ±3.1%
at a 95% confidence interval, meaning thatin 19 out of 20 cases, the data obtained
would not differ by any more than 3.1
percentage points in either direction had
the entire population of HR/Recruitment
professionals in the United States beensurveyed. Margins of error for subgroups
are higher.

AboutIndeed Hiring LabAbout Indeed

The Indeed Hiring Lab is a global research
institute committed to advancing theknowledge of human resource and talentmanagement professionals worldwide. Led
by Jed Kolko, Indeed’s Chief Economist,
the Indeed Hiring Lab’s research
agenda includes large-scale research
projects, ongoing tracking and analysis
of employment trends, and surveys ofindustry professionals.

More people find jobs on Indeed thananywhere else. Job seekers can search
millions of jobs on the web or mobile inover 60 countries and 28 languages. Eachmonth, more than 200 million uniquevisitors search for jobs, post resumes
and research companies on Indeed,
and Indeed is the #1 source of externalhires for thousands of companies. job
applicants. The questionnaire included
contained 28 inquiries in total, including
five demographic questions.
(Sources: *Google Analytics,
Unique Visitors, September 2016
SilkRoad, Sources of Hire 2017 (US))

For more information, visit
indeed.com/hire.

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