In its financial results for the year ended 31 December 2022, the group’s operating profit was also up 10% to £10.2m and adjusted profit before tax up 5% to £9m.

“We are pleased to have delivered solid growth in both NFI and profits against a rapidly changing economic backdrop, which saw demand soften in the second half of the year,” said CEO Rhona Driggs. “We continue to see the benefits of our diversification and are starting to see the positive results from the targeted investments we have made in people, technology and process.” 

As examples, Driggs cited “our strong growth in Offshore Services, our early success in delivering recruitment process outsourcing in [Asia-Pacific] and an increase of 6% in staff productivity”.

Also, the company reported the appointment of Penny Freer as chair of the board, having been interim chair since June 2022, when long-time chair Tony Martin retired. Appointed respectively in January 2023 and February 2023 were two new non-executive directors, Steve Bellamy and Ranjit de Sousa.

In an interview with Recruiter, Driggs explained that Empresaria’s Offshore Services business operates from three locations in India and the Philippines, primarily servicing staffing clients in the UK and UK markets, “and they saw very, very strong growth, particularly out of the UK. They service a lot of healthcare staffing companies, and that demand has been really strong throughout the year”.

She continued: “In the US, they started off good, and then towards the end of 2022, they started to realise a bit of a slowdown, due to all the tech layoffs. They primarily support IT staff companies in the US.”

Later this year, the group will launch Empresaria Solutions, “kind of an umbrella to help us globally supply to our clients… It allows the clients a much easier way to buy from us if they want to buy from us across multiple sectors and/or multiple regions. So that is one pillar of what Empresaria Solutions will be”.

Asked to identify Empresaria’s market identity currently, Driggs said, “I think people are starting to take notice of us more in the marketplace.”

Added CFO Tim Anderson: “All of the investments and the changes we’re making are reinforcing that wherever we are… it’s the pulling together of the group.”

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