Here is a list of research reports, and citations to other research, released last week by Staffing Industry Analysts.

INSIGHT - Office/clerical analyst interview
Staffing Industry Analysts recently released its Office/Clerical Staffing Growth Assessment report, which examines the key drivers of this market and the competitive landscape (including a list of top players), as well as the top target markets and skills for firms in this space. In this interview, Jon Osborne, Staffing Industry Analysts' Director of Research, talks about some of the main findings of the report. For more, click here.

INSIGHT - Trends and predictions for 2008
Welcome to Staffing Industry Analysts' annual predictions for the new year. This year, more than others, promises to be one of change and surprises. The industry got its first, and hopefully only, negative surprise at the start of the new year, with the collapse of VMS leader Chimes. While that event led to some short term business opportunities, it also will likely leave a bunch of staffing firms holding the bag for uncollected receivables. And now our predictions for 2008 ... click here.

BRIEFING - Locum tenens continues double-digit growth in third quarter
The most recent financial reports indicate that locum tenens is still one of the stronger sub-segments within healthcare staffing. In the third quarter, two public healthcare staffing firms' locum tenens businesses saw growth of 15.5% and 21.2%, respectively. This compares with our locum tenens forecast of 15% growth in 2007. For more, click here.

CITATION - Temporary help boon to labor market
This citation directs readers to a December 2007 strategic report entitled, "More Work Opportunities for More People: Unlocking the private employment agency industry's contribution to a better functioning labour market." Published by industry-advocacy group Eurociett, the paper provides a comparative analysis — focusing on France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, and Spain — of the staffing industry's effect on labor markets. The report may be of particular interest to those engaged in dialogue on the public policy implications of the staffing industry, since it provides recommendations that are validated through a variety of case-studies. For more, click here.

CITATION - Top 20 transnational temp agencies ranked by profitability
This citation directs readers to a December 2007 working brief entitled, "The Top 20 Transnational Temporary Staffing Agencies: Rankings by Profitability." As part of the University of Manchester's research series, the paper offers a unique twist on their annual analysis of the top global staffing firms. Whereas previous Working Briefs had ranked firms according to the extent of their foreign operations, this one ranks firms according to their profitability, as measured by net income as a percentage of revenue

Staffing firms interested in maximizing profitability should note two conclusions of this report in particular: 1) size does not seem to be a key driver of profitability and 2) four of the five highest profitability firms are specialist agencies. For more, click here.