More than one in 10 senior executives at UK firms are planning to add permanent, professional-level staff in H2 2011, according to Robert Half’s latest Professional Hiring Index.

The Index also reveals four in 10 executives say that they are ‘more confident’ about the prospects facing their companies in the second half of 2011, than they were six months ago.

The report also shows almost six in 10 (59%) executives say their greatest concern is the prospect of losing top performers over the coming months.

Meanwhile, one in five (21%) executives at private firms plan to increase salaries, with 31% expecting increases of more than 7% over existing levels.

Neil Owen, director at Robert Half, told Recruiter: “We saw in the sales and marketing function 21% of professionals indicated they would be increasing headcount. Within HR, 12% said they would be increasing headcout. Within IT, 15% said they would be looking to increase headcount and across financial services it was a 33% increase.

“The confidence is coming back to businesses. There is more confidence in the UK economy. The reason as to why headcount is being added is down to business growth and expansion.

“Growth is across the board. It has been a continuing trend over the past 18 months. Different businesses are coming out of the downturn at different rates. Certain businesses have cut back and been more cautious. Now as they become more confident, they know they will need good people to drive their business forward. You can’t grow and plan for increased growth without having the right people in place.”