The month
All 8 months of 2026 so far registered more contracts for management positions than the same month of 2025.
Strong seasonality: each month is only compared with the same month of the previous year.
So far this year
Between January and August, contracts for management positions changed by +5.6% and all contracts by +4.9%: a difference of 0.7 percentage points. Management accounts for 0.33% of all contracts.
Over the last twelve months, 50,312 contracts were registered for management positions.
Where
Madrid and Barcelona account for 50.3% of contracts for management positions in the period, against 48.6% a year earlier. The provinces with the most contracts are the Community of Madrid (10,203, +10.8%), Barcelona (6,649, +6.9%) and Valencia (1,733, +15.1%).
Province of the workplace. Headquarters effects may influence concentration.
Province of the workplace, not of residence. Ranked by number of contracts, not by growth.
See the table with 2025 and 2026
| Province | Jan–Aug 2025 | Jan–Aug 2026 | Change | Share 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Community of Madrid | 9,208 | 10,203 | +10.8% | 30.4% |
| Barcelona | 6,222 | 6,649 | +6.9% | 19.8% |
| Valencia | 1,505 | 1,733 | +15.1% | 5.2% |
| Illes Balears | 1,254 | 1,215 | −3.1% | 3.6% |
| Málaga | 1,195 | 1,207 | +1.0% | 3.6% |
| Sevilla | 798 | 896 | +12.3% | 2.7% |
| Alicante | 827 | 812 | −1.8% | 2.4% |
| A Coruña | 795 | 769 | −3.3% | 2.3% |
Which roles
The subgroup with the most contracts is administrative and commercial department managers, with 51.4% of the total.
Major group 1 of the Spanish National Classification of Occupations (CNO-11), subgroups 11 to 15. Scale from 0 to 100%.
Which sectors
By sector, wholesale and retail trade leads with 14.9% of contracts, followed by professional, scientific and technical activities (13.0%) and accommodation and food service (12.5%). SEPE changed its sector classification in January 2026 (CNAE-2025), so this breakdown is not compared with 2025.
The eight sectors with the most contracts. Includes conversions to permanent. SEPE changed the sector classification in January 2026 (CNAE-2025): no comparison with 2025.
Which companies hire
62.2% of contracts were signed in companies with up to 50 employees (63.2% a year earlier), and 13.9% in companies with 250 or more (13.0%).
Number of employees of the hiring company. Includes conversions to permanent.
These two breakdowns come from SEPE tables that also count conversions to permanent contracts: 33,984 in the period, against the 33,527 initial contracts in the rest of the report.
Contract conditions and profile
84.3% of contracts for management positions were permanent (84.3% a year earlier), and women signed 39.8% of them (39.3% in 2025).
The monthly scorecard
The same indicators, calculated the same way, in every edition, so that one month can be compared with another.
| Indicator | 2025 | 2026 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contracts for management positions in August | 2,618 | 2,822 | +7.8% |
| Contracts for management positions, Jan–Aug | 31,751 | 33,527 | +5.6% |
| All contracts, same period | 9,817,708 | 10,294,488 | +4.9% |
| Share of management in all contracts | 0.32% | 0.33% | +0.01 pp |
| Contracts registered in Madrid and Barcelona | 48.6% | 50.3% | +1.7 pp |
| Administrative and commercial managers (subgroup 12) | 50.7% | 51.4% | +0.7 pp |
| In companies with up to 50 employees* | 63.2% | 62.2% | −1.0 pp |
| Sector with the most contracts: wholesale and retail trade* | — | 14.9% | — |
| Permanent contracts | 84.3% | 84.3% | ±0.0 pp |
| Contracts signed by women | 39.3% | 39.8% | +0.5 pp |
| Contracts for management positions over the last twelve months | — | 50,312 | — |
* Base includes conversions to permanent (SEPE tables 10.1M and 10.3M); the sector is not compared with 2025 while the sector classification differs. Counts: change in %. Shares: change in percentage points (pp). All figures for January–August of each year, except the month row (August) and the twelve-month row.
How to read these figures
- A contract is not a person. One person can sign several contracts. We say "N contracts were registered", never "N executives were hired".
- The occupation is that of the job as declared by the company, not the CV of whoever fills it.
- The province is that of the workplace. Companies often register contracts for management positions at their headquarters, which probably inflates Madrid's share.
- Strong seasonality. August is usually the lowest month and September among the highest: each month is only compared with the same month of the previous year.
- No salaries, vacancies or company names. This source only counts registered contracts.
Source
Source: SEPE (Contracts Statistics, January 2025 – August 2026). Analysis: ZenitJob Executive Employment Observatory.
Sources, method and checks: how the Observatory works.
Downloads and press
Press release for this edition · Data for the 52 provinces (CSV)
Share of Madrid and Barcelona in contracts for management positions, Jan–Aug 2025 and 2026
Contracts for management positions, each month against the same month of 2025
The eight provinces with the most contracts for management positions, Jan–Aug 2026
Contracts for management positions by type of role, Jan–Aug 2026
Contracts for management positions by sector, Jan–Aug 2026
Contracts for management positions by company size, Jan–Aug 2025 and 2026Press contact: Ignacio Tomé · info@zenitjob.com. You may reproduce these figures and charts citing SEPE as the origin of the data and this Observatory as the author of the analysis.