Employers may be wasting millions of pounds because they aren’t monitoring how much they’re spending on procuring staff, research has revealed.

The third annual European Spend Agenda, compiled by research company Vanson Bourne, found that many firms suffer from spending ‘black holes’.

More than half (52%) said it was harder to track the cost of these contracts than more traditional, commodity procurement such as office stationery. Only just over 1% of UK companies said they had adequate control over their spend on services, which includes hiring temporary staff.

Steve Muddiman of software firm Ariba, which commissioned the report, said employers could better control spending by taking a more commodity-like approach and buying these services electronically. “Innovative companies are now looking to source staff through buying communities and electronic networks. Agencies can either be proactive and work with the companies that are using these tools or be reactive,” he said.