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New to Market

6 May 2025
Public sector, Creative/Digital/Media

NEW TO THE MARKET: 5-9 MAY 2025

• Heidrick & Struggles has launched a new Government & Defense Tech Practice, aimed at serving the growing demand for technology leadership within public sector organisations. With governments estimated to account for 10% of global technology and IT services spending, the firm sees this as a significant market opportunity. The practice consolidates the company’s experience from over 200 engagements to provide leadership solutions for organisations delivering technology to national, state and local governments worldwide.

The new practice will support clients by offering leadership search, development and organisational effectiveness services. It brings together more than 30 experienced partners across sectors such as IT services, aerospace and defence, energy and private equity, operating globally across North America, Europe, Asia and Australia. The initiative addresses the increasing reliance of governments on advanced technologies like AI, cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity and robotics.

• Workforce management solutions firm Matrix has supported more than 10,000 individuals across the UK into employment between March 2024 and April 2025 through its Social Value team. The efforts focused on a wide range of community initiatives, including employability workshops, career guidance and volunteering opportunities. These programmes were designed to help students, jobseekers and public sector employees gain essential skills and access new career pathways.

• UK start-up Project Brains has launched ProdigyPB, an AI-powered platform designed to revolutionise job description creation and recruitment. Tailored for SMEs, growing businesses, and HR teams, ProdigyPB helps define precise hiring needs by aligning job roles with specific business challenges. The tool generates clear, bias-free job descriptions in seconds and enables users to engage with vetted fractional specialists from Project Brains’ talent pool, according to a company statement. ProdigyPB is currently available in Beta across the UK.

28 April 2025
Life sciences, Engineering

NEW TO THE MARKET: 28 APRIL-2 MAY 2025

• Jobmatch Sweden, a leader in occupational psychological testing, is expanding in Norway through a new partnership with consulting firm Sund Raad. Sund Raad, which focuses on enhancing employee engagement for small and medium-sized businesses, will integrate Jobmatch’s DNV-certified Talent test into its services. This marks Jobmatch’s second partnership in Norway, following its 2022 collaboration with Hapro Jobb og Karriere. Jobmatch Talent is a scientifically validated tool used for recruitment and employee development, according to the company press release.

• STEM recruitment specialist Matchtech has launched STEM Futures, a free, on-demand employability platform aimed at helping young people break into engineering and technology careers. The programme includes expert-led sessions on job search strategies, CV writing, interviews and personal development, and is part of Matchtech’s broader initiative to address the STEM skills gap and support emerging talent.

In addition, Matchtech has awarded the first two grants from its Materna Fund, a £2.5k bursary created to support engineering students facing financial hardship. The inaugural recipients, Sergio Carreno Vargas and David Sarembock from the University of Portsmouth, are using the funds to focus on their studies and development without the added pressure of financial strain.

• Meet Life Sciences has launched Synergy, a new standalone service designed to tackle people capability challenges in the life sciences sector that go beyond recruitment. As part of Meet’s evolution into a full-service talent solutions partner, Synergy offers tailored support in areas like workforce planning, leadership development, skills mapping, culture embedding and organisational design. Led by vice-president Kirsty Wilson, the service is built specifically for the life sciences industry and is focused on delivering measurable, outcome-driven solutions. Unlike traditional consulting, Synergy provides hands-on support from design through to implementation, helping clients build the capability needed to grow, adapt and lead in a competitive global market.

• Right Management, part of ManpowerGroup, has launched a refreshed brand strategy called ‘The Right Way’. It’s a human-centred, data-backed framework that aligns workforce development with business strategy. The new identity centres on ‘The Right Way loop’, a distinctive visual element with modern colours and typography that will be used across all brand touchpoints.

25 April 2025
Construction & property, Graduates/Apprentices/School leavers

National student lettings agency launches apprenticeship scheme

In a bid to support young people and grow skilled and knowledgeable individuals for the student lettings sector, loc8me recently launched its 18-month programme, which is open to anyone aged 16-18. The scheme will offer hands-on experience, mentorship and the opportunity to engage in paid work.

Raffaele Russo, founder of loc8me, said: “We’re thrilled to launch this apprenticeship programme, giving young professionals a real chance to learn, grow and begin building a career in an exciting industry.

“Now more than ever, young people are seeking opportunities, guidance and goals to pursue. With this programme, we’re investing in their future – and in the future of the lettings sector.”

Apprentices will have the chance to study the theoretical and practical elements of the lettings industry, and on starting, they will be given a mentor from the loc8me team to support their development via regular meetings throughout the course.

loc8me now operates in 13 major university cities across the UK, including Loughborough, Durham, Nottingham, Manchester, Leeds, Cardiff, Newcastle, Birmingham, Liverpool, Leicester, Hull, Bath and Bristol.

Freya Watson-Russo, academy co-ordinator, said: "At loc8me, we’re committed to nurturing the next generation of letting agents. … We’re giving young people the chance to build a future, gain confidence and carve their own path.”

Founded in 2008 by Russo, loc8me manages more than 2,500 properties and employs more than 75 staff members.

(L-r) Apprentice Ollie Coe, loc8me's marketing assistant and academy co-ordinator Freya Watson-Russo and apprentice Isabel Tebbutt ©loc8me

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14 April 2025
Creative/Digital/Media, Engineering

NEW TO THE MARKET: 14-18 APRIL 2025

• Manufacturing and engineering specialist Busy Bee Recruitment has relaunched its website. The refreshed online platform has a modern design and enhanced user functionality, offering an intuitive browsing experience that makes it easier than ever to explore current vacancies, submit CVs quickly and securely, access expert recruitment advice via a blog and submit vacancies directly online.

• Deel, a global payroll and HR provider, has launched a suite of AI-driven products to help companies hire, manage, and pay international teams. Deel will offer an all-in-one global workforce platform integrating payroll, HR, and IT, designed to support compliant operations across borders. Key updates include: Real-Time Payroll in over 53 markets (expanding to 130+ by 2027), offering instant calculations and faster processing; Deel PEO for offering top-tier benefits without enterprise-level costs; Benefits Admin for simplified, compliant benefits management across countries; Deel Talent for streamlined recruitment via trusted agency networks; Workforce Planning, Compensation, and Engage tools – powered by AI – for smarter headcount strategy, global pay management, and employee development; IT Lifecycle Management features like MDM, IAM, and EPP, supporting global device and security control.

4 June 2024
Social care, Industrial/Manufacturing, HR, Healthcare/Medical, Apprentices/Grads/School leavers

Association of Labour Providers launches Manifesto for a Fair Labour Market

Representing the interests of labour providers and the businesses that use them, the ALP said: “We are committed to fostering a fair and inclusive labour market that benefits both workers and businesses alike… while promoting economic growth and prosperity.”

The 10 points are:

  1. Streamline key legislation. Suggested is an annual Employment Bill to deal with employment rights, minimum wage, holiday entitlement, working time and sickness absence. Also recommended is the introduction of legislation providing for “the presumption of an employment relationship for gig workers when the platform controls and directs the worker”. It goes on to suggest that the burden of proof should lie with the gig platform to prove that there is no employment relationship if they are genuinely engaging workers on a self-employed basis.
  2. Introduce evidence-based immigration policies. Introduce a ‘fit for purpose’, evidence-based immigration to work system, meeting the needs of UK employers whilst not disadvantaging the resident workforce. Measures could include redefining the role of the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC), similar to that provided by the Independent Low Pay Commission, and producing an annual evidence-based report on occupations where there are not enough resident workers to fulfil industry requirements and conducting a detailed inquiry into the size and nature of the estimated 1.2m undocumented workers in the UK, alongside a number of other key factors.
  3. Promote effective consultation and collaboration. Work with appropriate business representatives to ensure regulation and guidance are practical, comprehensive and up to date.
  4. Tackle labour exploitation. Suggested measures include undertaking a radical overhaul of vetting, monitoring and enforcement of businesses holding a sponsor licence on all immigration routes.
  5. Enforce work rights. Recommended steps include introduce a properly governed and resourced Single Enforcement Body tasked with remedying failures in current labour market regulation and ensuring robust enforcement mechanisms for the future, extend licensing of recruiters to the health and care worker visa worker recruitment supply chain and require the director of labour market enforcement to report on other sectors such as car washing, waste processing and garment manufacture where intervention such as licensing or a Supply Code of Practice is required to address egregious exploitation. 
  6. Provide access to justice. Suggested measures include rebranding Acas with “a name that is clear to all” such as ‘The Work Rights Helpline’ and make it be the single source of all employment information on GOV.UK and more detailed guidance to industry.
  7. Ensure a flexible labour market. Recommendations include mutually beneficial flexible working arrangements that accommodate diverse lifestyles and employment preferences and conduct a structural review of the legal right to ‘chain-leasing’, the ability for umbrella companies and other intermediaries to interpose themselves contractually or otherwise between the employment business and the worker.
  8. Enhance access to work. This point covers a variety of concerns such as future labour market policy, an overhaul of national skills policy, reform of the Apprenticeship Levy, social policy initiatives, redesigning accommodation rules, conducting a national ‘transport to work’ review and more.
  9. Make work pay. Addressing unemployment, underemployment and economic inactivity, including the implementation of a work tax and National Insurance strategy, which does not financially disincentivise businesses from providing full-time work.
  10. Ensure fair payment throughout supply chains. Recommended measures include adopting the Prompt Payment Code into law with a mandatory 30-day maximum payment period with late payment interest and potential charges. 

The ALP is a not-for-profit trade association.

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4 June 2024
Executive search

The FIRM relaunches as The Talent Labs, expands services

A statement from the UK-based, practitioner-led organisation said the move is designed to better align with the systemic ongoing transformation in the talent industry.

Structural change within the organisation is intended to “better bridge the gaps between talent acquisition, management and development”, the statement said. It reflects the need to help organisations meet the challenges of significant skills gaps, advancing technology, increasing competition, DEI considerations, shifting candidate expectations and demographic changes, all set against a backdrop of economic uncertainty.

The Talent Labs begins this next phase of its organisational journey with a global membership of 4,500, including employers such as EY, Nestlé, Balfour Beatty and TUI Group.

The growing organisation has expanded its services to meet specific needs that unlock the ability to recruit and retain talent. It now offers members three ‘Labs’ – a Talent Acquisition Lab to help its members better achieve their recruiting goals; a Talent Management Lab to guide teams on talent strategy design through to delivery; and a Talent Development Lab focused around developing skills for now and the future.

The Talent Labs has brought in former National Highways organisational development director Ted Miller to lead the new talent management and development offers. Miller has also worked as head of learning and development at Pendragon and in various learning roles at Eon.

Originally inaugurated in 2007 as a forward-thinking LinkedIn group dedicated to recruiting excellence, and featuring at that time on the cover of Recruiter, the Talent Labs has grown from a niche community into a global membership organisation for talent professionals.

Mirrington, who has worked in talent acquisition and management for organisations including Unilever, Sky and Mars, co-founded The FIRM to address a significant market gap: the need for a dedicated networking and resource-sharing platform for recruitment professionals.

Its advisory board is composed of current and previous heads of resourcing, talent consultants and industry experts.

It offers regular masterclasses, bespoke research and practical tools tailored to the needs of talent management and development professionals.

With upcoming initiatives like the Collaborate Conference, successor to its FIRMdays, the Talent Labs will continue to bring together experts and practitioners from across the talent spectrum to share insights, strategies and best practices.

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4 June 2024
Marketing, Executive search, IT/Telecoms, HR, Accounting/Finance

NEW TO THE MARKET: 3-7 JUNE 2024

• IR35 compliance firm IR35 Shield has launched an IR35 Academy designed to equip businesses with the knowledge and skills to navigate the complexities of the off-payroll working rules (IR35) that will help protect them from future tax risks. The academy’s core modules provide comprehensive instruction on the origins of IR35, understanding employment status tests, the difference between the original IR35 and the reformed off-payroll rules, who is affected, determining tax status through compliant processes and HMRC’s requirements for reasonable care.

The academy offers training tailored to each business based on where they sit in the supply chain. Modules are based on business and give practical guidance aligned with their real-world operations.

• Oyster, a global employment platform to hire, pay and care for distributed teams, has launched Oyster Shell, offering companies an additional layer of protection from potential contractor misclassification risks. When organisations hire contractors on the Oyster platform, they have the option to enrol in contractor misclassification insurance for coverage up to $500k (£393k).

• Rubicon, a 100% employee-owned company, has relaunched its Senior Appointments sub-brand as Rubicon Executive, aiming to enhance the recruitment of C-Suite executives for UK businesses. Rubicon Executive focuses on diversity & inclusion in its recruitment process, noting that companies with diverse executive boards perform better financially. Additionally, Rubicon Executive stresses the importance of succession planning to maintain business resilience. The relaunch aims to distinguish Rubicon Executive’s specialised recruitment services from the broader Rubicon Recruitment portfolio, with a mission to place top-performing leaders who drive business success across the UK.

• Wave has launched its Candidate Attraction Playbook to help recruiters find the right candidates at the right time using data-driven strategies. The playbook, leveraging exclusive data from WaveTrackR, offers guidance on where to source candidates (eg. CRMs, job boards, websites, socials), when to post job ads for maximum exposure and what content to include in job ads to attract high-calibre applicants. This free resource aims to enhance recruiters’ effectiveness in a competitive and evolving job market by combining data insights with recruitment expertise.

21 May 2024
Public sector, Social care, Education, Healthcare/Medical, Apprentices/Grads/School leavers

Arden University develops apprenticeship course for NHS trust to address staff shortages

This was in response to Nottingham University Hospitals (NUH) NHS Trust wanting to address staff shortages.

The course, which includes an executive MBA, provides current and future leaders with the knowledge, high-level leadership and management skills, and equips them with the desired behaviours they need, to become more effective. In doing so, it also delivers professional pan-industry leadership qualifications and a professional pathway to Chartered Manager status, a statement from Arden said.

The apprenticeship is designed to enhance the careers of current health and care workers, and as such, it can be completed via remote learning to ensure it fits in with the demands of their roles.

The apprenticeship offered a number of benefits for NUH, with staff who undertook the course “feeling more invested in the organisation”, the statement said. “This will have a positive effect on retention rates in the future.”

In recent years, with many roles at NUH hard to fill, staff retention had become increasingly important, the statement said.

Ensuring staff completed training feeling valued by NUH, while also leaving with an MBA qualification, was key.

The SLA is designed to accelerate NUH staff to the next stage of their career to lead departments, services, systems of care or transformation projects.

By working with Arden University, the statement said, NUH is able to target its apprenticeship activity within the services that typically struggle to recruit pre-qualified staff, while also allowing those who haven’t followed the traditional education routes to remain in work and gain a high-calibre qualification.

Through the qualification, NUH staff are able to develop their skills and careers, allowing further investment in the development of new talent. Since launching the apprenticeship for its team, NUH has reported that they not only witnessed staff that were undertaking the apprenticeships developing their skills, but also reported that the managers supporting apprentices developing their own line management and mentoring skills – allowing the apprenticeship process to, directly and indirectly, enable development.

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