Take the stress out of hiring

Why SA’s leading recruiters choose Pnet.

South Africa’s corporate employers are under more pressure than ever when it comes to recruitment. While demand for specialised and experienced talent continues to rise, the supply of available and suitable candidates remains tight – particularly in industries such as IT, Finance, and Engineering.

Transformation remains a strategic priority, yet many teams struggle to find qualified candidates that meet EE and other inclusion criteria. Meanwhile, hiring budgets are shrinking, candidate expectations are changing, and global mobility is redrawing the talent map.

For many companies, time is money. Every day a role remains unfilled, productivity drops, customer service suffers, and opportunities are lost. That’s why Time-to-Hire has become one of the most pressing challenges for large recruiters.

This is where Pnet offers a powerful advantage. With unmatched local reach, data-rich insights, and global innovation, Pnet helps employers move from “We need someone” to “We’ve hired someone” in a fraction of the time it takes with traditional methods and faster than its closest online platform competitors, according to The Stepstone Group’s latest Customer Engagement Study.

The Local Advantage: Reach, Relevance and Results

With over 7.3 million registered jobseekers, Pnet has built the largest and most engaged jobseeker database in South Africa. Every month, it delivers more than 3.2 million applications and sends over 100 million job alert emails to prospective candidates – connecting the right people to the right roles and drastically reducing Time-to-Hire.

But scale is only one part of the value. What sets Pnet apart is the precision and quality it brings to enterprise hiring.

Precision Tools for inclusive, targeted hiring

Pnet is the only local recruitment platform that allows recruiters to filter and shortlist candidates using South African-specific data points – including Employment Equity status, gender, disability, and local qualifications. These tools are invaluable to large corporates under pressure to meet transformation targets, build inclusive teams, and support internal workforce equity goals.

Through Direct Search, Pnet empowers recruiters to actively headhunt using advanced filters across the entire database. This functionality cuts time-to-hire by helping recruiters zero in on accurate matches quickly and efficiently. In addition, Pnet automates the search process by sending recruiters suitable new matches on past Direct Search results.

Built for Enterprise: Tools that solve real problems

Pnet offers a suite of enterprise-grade tools designed specifically to support high-volume and strategic hiring:

Talent Pool: Segment candidates by business unit, function, region, or level of experience to pipeline talent and fill roles faster;
Company Passport: Showcase EVP, culture, and employee experiences to attract right-fit candidates;
Careers Interface (CI.hr): White-label ATS that integrates directly with company systems; 80% of applications delivered via Pnet to CI.hr platforms; and
Response Handling: Expert support services that manage shortlisting, questionnaires, and candidate communication – accelerating hiring timelines.

All tools are backed by real-time insights and designed to shorten the hiring cycle while improving quality.

Performance backed by Research

Independent market research* confirms that Pnet delivers best-in-class results across key performance areas:

Pnet delivers the shortest Time-to-Hire relative to our closest competitors;
Pnet ranks #1 for Support and Customer Communication;
Pnet shares the #1 Net Promoter Score (NPS) with a global player; and.

Pnet is on par with one of the world’s largest platform providers in overall performance, and well ahead of local competitors.

For large recruiters, these benchmarks reflect real-world efficiency, responsiveness, and satisfaction from both clients and candidates.

A smarter, more transparent Model

Pnet’s recruitment solutions are designed with transparency and flexibility in mind, especially for corporate employers who need to manage budgets and drive ROI.

Unlike other platforms, you never pay more to reach more people, and there are no hidden fees for accessing advanced features. Every recruiter has access to Pnet’s full suite of tools – including filters, search, company branding, and smart matching – from Day 1.

This makes Pnet not only more effective, but also more cost-efficient in the long run. You only pay for what you use, and this includes tailored support from a dedicated account manager, with local knowledge and industry expertise.

Local Roots. Global Reach.

Pnet is proudly South African, but also part of The Stepstone Group – one of the world’s leading JobTech companies. This gives South African employers access to:

Global innovation, shared product development, and platform enhancements;
International talent insights (e.g. Stepstone/BCG/Network’s Global Talent Mobility Study); and
Exposure to best practices from global HR leaders and high-performing hiring teams.
At the same time, Pnet maintains its local focus – with real account teams, local expertise, and a deep understanding of South Africa’s legal and transformation frameworks.

Designed for the Future of Work

Recruitment is no longer just about filling roles. It’s about shaping the future of work. Whether you’re focused on retention, reskilling or building a purpose-led employer brand, your recruitment strategy plays a central role in business performance.

Pnet continues to evolve in response to this shift. As a recruitment partner, it is committed to helping South Africa’s largest employers:

Build inclusive, high-performing teams;
Reduce time-to-hire and increase quality of hire;
Strengthen employer brands and employee value propositions;
Use data and insight to plan smarter and hire with confidence; and
Move beyond transactional job advertising into strategic talent acquisition.

Join the Conversation at HR Summit 2025

As the head sponsor of the Talent Conference at this year’s HR Summit, Pnet will be hosting key conversations around:

AI’s real role in recruitment;
Retaining SA’s top talent in a global world;
Internal mobility and workforce agility;
Candidate experience and EVP; and
Real hiring challenges in a tough economy.

You’ll also hear from senior leaders and experts including Simon Blair, Paul Byrne, and Roxanne Clark from Pnet – along with speakers from BCG, FNB, KFC, Nutun and BCX, among others.

Seats are limited. Don’t miss your opportunity to be part of the conversation shaping the future of work in South Africa.

*Ipsos 2025 Customer Engagement Study.