| name | market-research |
| description | This skill should be used when the user asks about "compensation benchmarks", "salary data", "market trends", "talent supply and demand", "hiring landscape", "market research for recruiting", "compensation analysis", "talent availability", "hiring difficulty", "market rate", or needs to understand the labor market dynamics for a specific role, function, or geography. |
Market Research for Recruiting Sourcing
Purpose
Analyze labor market dynamics to inform sourcing strategy and stakeholder conversations. Provide data-driven insights on compensation ranges, talent supply/demand, hiring difficulty, and market trends. Market research transforms sourcing from guesswork into strategic, evidence-based talent acquisition.
Research Dimensions
Compensation Analysis
Build compensation intelligence by triangulating multiple sources:
Data Sources (by reliability):
- Internal data - Current employee comp, recent offers (most relevant)
- Offer data - Rejected/accepted offers with candidate feedback
- Survey data - Radford, Mercer, Culpepper, Carta (structured, lagging)
- Crowdsourced - Levels.fyi, Glassdoor, Blind, Payscale (directional, noisy)
- Job postings - Published salary ranges where legally required (Colorado, NYC, CA, EU)
- Recruiter intelligence - Competitive offers seen in market (anecdotal, current)
Compensation Structure:
- Base salary - Fixed annual pay by level/location
- Variable/bonus - Target bonus percentage, attainment rates
- Equity - RSU/option grants, vesting schedules, refresh grants
- Total compensation - All-in annual value including benefits
- Sign-on - One-time payments to offset candidate costs
Segmentation:
- By geography (city/region, with cost-of-living adjustments)
- By company stage (startup, growth, enterprise, FAANG)
- By seniority level (junior through executive)
- By specialization (premium for niche skills)
Talent Supply & Demand
Supply indicators:
- LinkedIn talent pool sizes for given search criteria
- Number of "open to work" candidates in the segment
- Active applicant volume on job boards
- Candidate response rates to outreach
- Average time candidates spend on market
Demand indicators:
- Number of open roles for the profile (LinkedIn, Indeed, Glassdoor)
- Job posting growth rate over past 6-12 months
- Average time-to-fill for similar roles (industry benchmarks)
- Number of companies actively hiring for the role
- Recruiter activity in the space (InMail volume, outreach frequency)
Supply/Demand Ratio:
- Candidate-driven market (supply > demand): More candidates than roles; lower urgency, more selectivity
- Employer-driven market (demand > supply): More roles than candidates; higher urgency, competitive offers needed
- Balanced market: Supply roughly matches demand; standard processes work
Hiring Difficulty Assessment
Rate hiring difficulty on a scale with these factors:
| Factor | Low Difficulty | High Difficulty |
|---|
| Pool size | Large (1000+) | Small (<100) |
| Demand | Few competitors hiring | Many competitors hiring |
| Comp expectations | Aligned with budget | Above budget range |
| Location requirements | Remote/flexible | Specific city, in-office |
| Skill rarity | Common skill set | Niche/emerging skills |
| Brand strength | Strong employer brand | Unknown/weak brand |
| Time pressure | Flexible timeline | Urgent fill needed |
Market Trends
Track and report on:
- Emerging skills - New technologies/frameworks gaining adoption
- Declining skills - Technologies being deprecated or replaced
- Workforce shifts - Remote work trends, gig economy, contractor preferences
- Regulatory changes - Pay transparency laws, immigration policy, labor regulations
- Economic factors - Layoff trends, funding cycles, hiring freezes/surges
- Industry movements - Consolidation, new entrants, pivots
Research Process
Step 1: Define Research Scope
Clearly specify:
- Role/function being researched
- Geographic markets of interest
- Seniority range
- Key comparison companies or segments
- Specific questions to answer
Step 2: Gather Data
Collect data from available sources:
- Web search for recent salary surveys and reports
- LinkedIn for pool sizing and demand signals
- Job boards for posted salary ranges and posting volume
- Industry reports for trends and benchmarks
- Community discussions for qualitative signals
Step 3: Analyze & Synthesize
- Cross-reference multiple sources to establish ranges
- Identify outliers and understand why they exist
- Note data recency and reliability
- Segment by relevant dimensions (geography, seniority, company type)
Step 4: Frame Recommendations
- Position findings relative to the hiring company's context
- Highlight trade-offs (e.g., "increasing budget by 15% expands pool 3x")
- Provide actionable recommendations for sourcing strategy
- Flag risks and market challenges
Output Format
Market Research Report Structure
1. Executive Summary
- Key findings in 3-5 bullet points
- Overall hiring difficulty rating
- Top recommendation
2. Compensation Landscape
- Salary ranges by level (P25, P50, P75, P90)
- Total compensation breakdown
- Geographic variations
- Comparison to hiring company's range
3. Supply & Demand Analysis
- Estimated talent pool size
- Active demand (competing open roles)
- Supply/demand characterization
- Trend direction (improving or worsening)
4. Competitive Landscape
- Top companies hiring for similar roles
- Employer brand comparison
- Compensation positioning
- Unique selling points vs. competitors
5. Recommendations
- Sourcing strategy implications
- Compensation positioning advice
- Timeline expectations
- Risk mitigations
Data Presentation
When presenting compensation data, use clear ranges:
Senior Data Engineer - San Francisco Bay Area
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Base Salary │
│ P25: €165,000 P50: €185,000 P75: €210,000│
│ │
│ Total Compensation (incl. equity + bonus) │
│ P25: €220,000 P50: €280,000 P75: €350,000│
└─────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Sources: Levels.fyi, Glassdoor, etc. posted ranges (2026)
Always note:
- Data sources and recency
- Sample size where available
- Geographic basis
- Whether ranges are base or total comp
Additional Resources
Reference Files
You are stongly encouraged to read the reference files
For detailed methodology:
references/data-sources-guide.md - Complete guide to compensation and market data sources with access methodsreferences/report-templates.md - Markdown and HTML templates for market research reports
