FINANCIALS: Parity results increase, Parity Professionals refocuses on niche

Parity Professionals, the recruitment division of UK IT and marketing services company Parity, is refocusing its efforts on niche areas to achieve higher margins, chairman Paul Davies told Recruiter.
Wed, 8 Apr 2015
Parity Professionals, the recruitment division of UK IT and marketing services company Parity, is refocusing its efforts on niche areas to achieve higher margins, chairman Paul Davies told Recruiter.

Parity’s audited preliminary results for the year ended 31 December 2014, released this morning (8 April), show group revenue increased to £92.26m (2013: £91.95m), profit before non-recurring items increased to £0.22m (2013: £0.46m loss), and adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) increased to £1.6m (2013: £1.45m).

Parity Professionals, which specialises in placing professional staff and combines the company’s IT resources and talent management offerings, saw revenue increase to £84.47m (2013: £83.71m).

Davies told Recruiter the bulk of that division’s business had been account management, managing high volumes of IT freelancers, but financial returns were “under threat” by margins and gatekeepers – big businesses such as Capita that outsource parts of contracts to smaller businesses.

The managed services space was becoming increasingly competitive, he said, and so the company needed to look elsewhere to maintain shareholder value.

While it is not discontinuing its managed service offering, Parity Professionals will focus more on niche tech and IT areas.

Parity’s individual brands – Parity Professionals and SuperCommunications – were split in 2013 and emphasis has been put on setting both up to operate independently. Davies said Parity Professionals will be able to leverage contacts and knowledge from SuperCommunications, which specialises in marketing and IT solutions.

The financial statement said the IT resources division of Parity Professionals lost a contract due to the client making a strategic move to manage temp recruitment via another company, a “major vendor”.

In the same statement, Parity chairman Philip Swinstead said the Professionals division would continue to migrate its offerings to “the most attractive long-term growth sectors of its markets”.

He continued: “I expect this to restrict its growth prospects this year, but it will ensure that it can then move forward thereafter.”

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