Filling Vacancies: Identifying the Most Efficient Recruitment Channel

This paper provides new results on the recruitment behaviour of firms by showing that recruitment channels clearly affect the probability of filling a vacancy. Using a French data, we estimate the effectiveness of different recruitment strategies, taking into account that recruitment channels choices are endogenous and that firms strategically combine several channels. Our results enable us to conclude that institutional intermediaries, such as private and public employment agencies, are found to be the most effective channels for firms. However, these intermediaries are specialized, in that private agencies are more efficient at filling skilled vacancies, whereas public agencies are more efficient at filling non-skilled vacancies.