Bull: Randstad winning fight in UK with best perm month in three years
29 November 2013
Randstad UK had the best month on the permanent side of its business for three years in September, according to the head of the business, speaking exclusively to recruiter.co.uk.
Fri, 29 Nov 2013Randstad UK had the best month on the permanent side of its business for three years in September, according to the head of the business, speaking exclusively to recruiter.co.uk.
Mark Bull, chief executive officer for Randstad in the UK and the Middle East, says: “There has been a growth in confidence, particularly on the perm side, but there has also been a general improvement on the temporary side of the business as well. It feels more positive than it did four months ago.”
As a result, Bull tells recruiter.co.uk that September “was the biggest perm month for three years in terms of the total value of fees invoiced”.
Globally, the group returned to growth in September and achieved its highest profitability since 2008 in Q3, according to the staffing firm's financial results, released at the end of October, with revenue per working day in the UK 8% up on the previous quarter.
He adds that while London and the South-East saw “the most growth”, which reflects broader realities in the job market, regional cities such as Leeds and Manchester also benefitted from “a better feel to the economy”.
“Clients have been operating on quite thin staffing levels for quite a while, so relatively small increases in their business mean they start recruiting again,”
Bull explains.
Bull says that Randstad’s construction & engineering and education business saw the strongest growth.
Indeed, Randstad Education is, at 26th, the highest ranked of three group businesses in this year's Recruiter HOT 100, ranking the UK recruitment firms with the greatest gross profit per employee. The 2013 HOT 100 is sponsored by Flo Software Solutions and supported by RBS.
Mark Bull, chief executive officer for Randstad in the UK and the Middle East, says: “There has been a growth in confidence, particularly on the perm side, but there has also been a general improvement on the temporary side of the business as well. It feels more positive than it did four months ago.”
As a result, Bull tells recruiter.co.uk that September “was the biggest perm month for three years in terms of the total value of fees invoiced”.
Globally, the group returned to growth in September and achieved its highest profitability since 2008 in Q3, according to the staffing firm's financial results, released at the end of October, with revenue per working day in the UK 8% up on the previous quarter.
He adds that while London and the South-East saw “the most growth”, which reflects broader realities in the job market, regional cities such as Leeds and Manchester also benefitted from “a better feel to the economy”.
“Clients have been operating on quite thin staffing levels for quite a while, so relatively small increases in their business mean they start recruiting again,”
Bull explains.
Bull says that Randstad’s construction & engineering and education business saw the strongest growth.
Indeed, Randstad Education is, at 26th, the highest ranked of three group businesses in this year's Recruiter HOT 100, ranking the UK recruitment firms with the greatest gross profit per employee. The 2013 HOT 100 is sponsored by Flo Software Solutions and supported by RBS.
- For more on how Bull is reshaping the Randstad business, see the December issue of Recruiter.
