The Finnish headhunting market contracted by 18% to €80.9 million in 2024 from the year before, with notable shifts in structure, competition, and performance, according to the findings of a survey conducted by Listeds in partnership with recruitment media Duunitori.

Listeds collected survey data for Duunitori to build a comprehensive industry picture, covering 134 companies and their revenue development during their latest fiscal year. The 2023 figures come from Duunitori, which published the latest 2024 report on Nov. 20 (in Finnish).

Source: Duunitori.

Market overview

• Executive search turnover 2024: €80.9 million

• Turnover 2023: €99 million → This represents a contraction of about 18 percent.

• Number of companies with 2024 headhunting turnover: 134

• Pure headhunting enterprises (100 percent executive search): 46 → About 34 percent of all companies focus exclusively on executive search.

The market has grown significantly over the past decade, although with some cyclical fluctuations. The 2024 decline signals a more cautious hiring climate for senior roles and a shift toward selective recruitment.

Market structure and segmentation

Interpretation

• The Finnish market remains heavily weighted toward small operators. Two-thirds of companies fall in the micro category with under €0.5 million in annual turnover.

• Mid-sized enterprises in the 1–3 million euro range form an increasingly important professional core, although the single largest concentration of pure headhunting specialists remains in the micro tier.

• Only a few players reach the large category, typically between three and 10 million euros in annual turnover. In 2024, this group included MPS, Mercuri Urval, Egon Zehnder, InHunt Group, IMS Talent, and Heidrick & Struggles.

• No companies surpass €10 million in annual headhunting turnover, which underlines the fragmented and boutique-oriented nature of the Finnish executive search industry.

  
  

The 20 largest headhunting companies in Finland (including mixed-service providers)

This ranking includes both pure-headhunting companies and mixed-service HR providers that offer executive search as part of a broader portfolio.

The table shows the 2024 headhunting turnover in comparison to 2023, and how large a share of each company’s business was executive search in 2024. The latest data are primarily based on survey responses.

Key insights

• The top 20 service providers together represent a significant share of the market, likely well over half, which indicates moderate concentration at the top despite the long tail of small operators.

• MPS leads the market by total executive search revenue, even though less than 50 percent of its business is pure headhunting.

• After MPS, the highest ranks are occupied by European advisory giants Mercuri Urval and Egon Zehnder, followed by Finland's IMS Talent and Chicago-headquartered Heidrick & Struggles, both slightly above €3.4 million.

• Fastest growth was recorded by:

  • Adecco Finland (+132 percent)

  • Sam Headhunting (+106 percent)

  • Compass Human Resources (+35 percent)

• Several major market players experienced significant declines compared to the Duunitori report last year, including Egon Zehnder (−36 percent) and Boyden (−34 percent), reflecting lower demand for retained executive search assignments.

Profitability in 2024

• Total reported profit: €22.6 million

• Median profit: €7,600

• Average profit: €174,000

The profit distribution is strongly skewed. A small group of companies captures the majority of total profit, while many boutiques operate with tight margins. This pattern resembles other professional services fields where scale and brand recognition influence profitability.

Year-on-year trends

1. Market contraction: Executive search volume decreased about 18 percent from 2023 to 2024.

2. Growth in specialization: More than one-third of companies are now pure headhunting specialists.

3. Polarization by size: The market is divided between global networks and boutique firms, while the middle segment continues to thin.

4. Focus on cost efficiency: Firms maintained profitability overall but faced slower profit growth.

5. Boutiques gaining ground: JFP Executive Search and Sam Headhunting showed strong performance, while Fairchild maintained its competitive position despite the market downturn.

Summary

The 2024 Finnish headhunting market is professional, highly specialized, and structurally fragmented. Although the total value declined to €80.9 million, the industry remains competitive and dynamic with 46 pure headhunting companies and over 100 active companies overall.

The year highlighted significant contrasts. Large international search enterprises saw declining revenues, while several national boutiques achieved strong growth. Client behavior appears to be shifting from high volume toward high value and from large brand names toward flexible, specialized providers.

If you want to read the Duunitori report (in Finnish), you can find it here.

How was the data collected?

Listeds collected survey responses on behalf of Duunitori from operators in Finland’s executive search field in October 2025. We asked companies to confirm their total and headhunting revenue from the most recent financial year. A total of 34 responses were received, and the official revenue figures for other companies were retrieved from Kauppalehti’s pages. In cases where companies offer other HR services in addition to executive search, Duunitori’s suggested percentage coefficient was used — the same as in the previous year.