Adecco employees are mourning the death of the co-founder of the Swiss recruiter.

Klaus Jacobs was 71 and the cause of death was cancer, according to his family.

Jacobs’ involvement in recruitment began with the 1992 purchase of Adia Personnel Services. The recruiter was transformed into the a global leader in HR Services and a Global Fortune 500 Company following its merger with French recruiter Ecco in 1996.

Jacobs was elected honorary president in May 2007.

As news of Mr Jacobs' death circulated on Friday, shares plunged by 19.5p to 290.5p, before recovering to trade down 1p at 309p.