2009 In Review

KS FRARY&ASSOCIATES entered 2009 believing that the severe downturn that started in 2008 would repair itself by mid to late 2009. Well, we got some of it right and some of it wrong. The downturn is still with us today though the severity has lessoned. We believe that retained recruiting, in most sectors, will continue slowly in 2010. Certain segments, such as education, finance, security, food, and aspects of health care, will remain reasonably strong. Critical roles will continue to be filled while most new or replacement positions will likely stay on hold, be eliminated, or filled through other means.

As the economy continued to flounder in 2009, most of our Clients held up well as they had already right sized appropriately when their markets began to deteriorate. Overall, KS FRARY&ASSOCIATES had a decent but not spectacular 2009. Projects included searches in such functional areas as engineering, sales, marketing, quality control, general management, and board roles in such industries as solar cell production equipment, consumer packaged goods, smart card manufacturing, perishable food products, and custom engineered equipment.

Our 2010 projection overall is not a robust one for retained recruiters though we believe there should be a modest pick-up by midyear. In the meantime, we continue to invest in our people and in information technology. This will, we believe, result in faster project turnaround and shorter search cycles, which today for us average about 85 days from search start to candidate start.

KS FRARY&ASSOCIATES continues to offer a range of flexible fee options and delivers our clients excellent value, especially when compared to the larger firms. We believe we are well positioned for any recruiting challenge that 2010 may bring. When reach, reputation, and results count, count on KS FRARY&ASSOCIATES.

Thank you for your interest in our company.