The private sector intends to ‘power on through’ 2011 with increased job creation.

This is the result of a survey from the commercial clients of SMRS, a recruitment advertising and HR communications agency based in London and Manchester.

Representing nearly a quarter of a million employees and with a turnover more than £25bn, nearly 50% of respondents said they definitely expected to grow in terms of recruitment in 2011, with just under 7% saying they expected their numbers to fall.

With high numbers of potential candidates on the market, one of the key challenges for the sector is how to recruit the best candidates from an increased number of applications. From the survey, 69% of respondents stated they need to focus on driving the quality of responses, with 40% also stating they feared an increase in competition for the best people.

The survey also revealed significant shifts in the recruitment tools used by the private sector to recruit. The growth in the use of digital channels and social media is significant, with 82% planning to use online job boards and 54% social media.

Internal talent development and staff referral programmes are also tools organisations are intending to deploy more effectively.