U.S. Businesses Plan to Hire New Graduates, Freelance and Remote Workers

U.S. businesses plan to hire new graduates, freelance and remote workers to increase headcount while remaining flexible and rapidly scalable in an uncertain market (source: Regus Business Confidence Index, based on responses from more than 12,000 companies worldwide). More than a third of U.S. companies are prepare to recruit new graduates, while 47 percent say they plan to hire freelance staff, and 44 percent plan to hire remote workers over the next two years. Since April, business confidence in the U.S. fell more than 20 percent (119 to 90 points), signifying the biggest fall in the overall index.

"As business confidence drops and macro-economic conditions remain uncertain, hiring new graduates, freelance and remote workers is becoming an increasingly popular, risk-averse solution to increase headcount for U.S. and global businesses," said Guillermo Rotman, CEO, Regus Americas. "In addition, by taking advantage of technology solutions available in the U.S market and abroad, it is even possible for small businesses to establish a low-risk, remote or contract presence in target markets without making lengthy commitments, allowing them to expand or withdraw depending on volatile market conditions."

The index revealed similar conditions globally. More than half (64 percent) of global companies say they plan to increase headcount in the next two years despite global business confidence slipping 11 percent since April, down to 114. Illustrating the changing structure of employment across the globe, worldwide hiring intentions also show a strong emphasis on freelancers, graduates and remote workers.

Additional key findings from the 5th edition of the Regus Business Confidence Index, include:

-- The majority of global markets measured by the index show a decrease in business confidence since April 2011 ranging from the 29 point drop in the U.S. to Australia, which is only down 4 points. The only exceptions are Brazil (up 7 points), India (up 11 points) and Germany (up 4 points). The global index average is down 11 points to 114.

-- The proportion of global companies reporting revenue growth (51 percent) and rising profits (42 percent) has virtually flat-lined, increasing only one percentage point compared to six months ago; and over a third of companies (36 percent) have pushed back their expectations for recovery to the second half of 2012.

-- Interestingly, companies trading internationally show a higher business confidence index score (120) compared to those with mainly domestic markets (110).

-- To download a copy of the full report please visit: www.regus.presscentre.com