Just a few months after its acquisition of Encore Personnel in the UK, Gi Group Holding has purchased The Bridge—an HR technology consultancy focused on building and scaling up digital capabilities for multinational businesses. This is the 50^th acquisition the business has made.

Founded in 2017 in Santiago de Chile, The Bridge Social offers clients a global network of creative, technological, and digital professionals, built on the promise of creating meaningful connections between companies and clients. The acquisition will allow Gi Group Holding to expand not only its regional presence, but also strengthen its offering in the HR technology space. Indeed, The Bridge Social’s cutting-edge technology, combined with Gi Group Holding’s expertise in recruitment and staffing, will provide a unique and comprehensive solution for clients looking to optimize their Technology, Design, and Data science professional teams.

Over the years, Gi Group Holding management has pursued a measured, strategic approach to business growth: developing both internal company services and talent, while also acquiring new businesses whose service and product offerings complement and enhance the Group structure. This holds especially true when it comes to delivering the best services possible for Gi Group Holding clients and candidates.

Throughout our company’s history, strategic investments and acquisition have advanced our capability to grow and be resilient: even when faced with challenging market ebbs and flows. Our most recent 2021 results are remarkable, thanks to earnings contributions from the entire Gi Group Holding community amounting to 3.2 billion EUR in revenues (up by more than 30% against the 2020 fiscal year).

Gi Group Holding made its first acquisition way back in 2005 buying Fiat’s employment agency Worknet, making the Group the largest Italian-owned agency at the time; with turnover of 320 million EUR and 190 branches. Only a year later, it completed its first foreign acquisition by purchasing Germany’s Mumme Personaldientsleistungen GmbH, and in 2008 its first extra-European company purchase with the buy-out of the permanent and professional staffing service agency, Elixir. During that same year, the Group took over Brazil’s S&L Recurso Humanos, marking its first acquisition in Latin America, and completed further international expansion to China, France, and Spain.

Just three years later Gi Group would acquire R4S, giving the Group a presence in the UK. In the mid-2010s, Gi Group Holding began making a series of strategic acquisitions to expand its service portfolio: it bought TACK & TMI in 2016 giving the company an international opening to Learning & Development services and in 2018 it acquired Grafton, a brand dedicated to the development of candidates and their professional profiles.

In 2022, Gi Group Holding purchased EUPro which significantly elevate the Milan-based group’s footprint and capabilities in Switzerland and the Principality of Lichtenstein, becoming number one in the Ticino Canton. Furthermore, Gi Group Holding took a further step with the acquisition of CVO Recruitment and Simplika, which allowed the Group to be present in Estonia and Latvia, strengthening its presence in the Baltic region.

In the last two years, the Group has made a couple of strategic, technology-focused acquisitions: first with its buy-up of the JobToME a Programmatic Job Advertising Solution company in 2021 and then, this year, by purchasing The Bridge Social.

“With all our business buy-ups and acquisitions, there is always a clear strategy to why we seek to acquire specific companies. This ranges from intriguing and client-beneficial product offerings on to access to new markets or the delivery of technologies that will streamline our work and service-delivery processes. At Gi Group Holding, we have always believed in a combination of organic (internal service-driven) and acquisition-based growth. As we reach the 50^th company purchase mark, we are proud that this strategy has paid off and brought us a tremendous wealth of know-how, market access, and service + product innovation,” – Stefano Colli-Lanzi, Founder & CEO

We, at Gi Group Holding, look forward to sharing continued successes as our passionate team of professionals across the world, and from all the above-mentioned, successfully integrated businesses, work together to implement our strategic vision and make a difference for People, Labour Markets, and Society by being #MoreThanWork.

Gi Group, one of the world’s largest HR solutions and staffing companies, is celebrating after being crowned “Recruitment Team of the Year” at the prestigious REC Awards 2022.

Gi Group won the award following its work as Official Recruiter for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Also noteworthy was the company’s nomination for another award: “Community Impact of the Year”, in recognition of the £1.3m of social value contribution it generated over 12 months as a direct result of its work with Birmingham 2022.

REC is the leading industry body for the UK recruitment industry, and the annual REC Awards celebrate the best in UK recruitment, showcasing the work of brilliant recruiters from across the sector.

Commenting on winning the award, Paulo Canoa, CEO and UK & Ireland Country Manager of Gi Group said: “We are delighted to win this prestigious award. Our work involved the assistance of end-to-end recruitment services for The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, filling over 1,700 roles across multiple specialisms. This was in addition to training and apprenticeship programmes, which were also delivered by Intoo, part of Gi Group

“Importantly,” Canoa added, “the embedded recruitment team, led by Operations Manager Sam Vaughan, ensured the Organising Committee met its objectives, finding the right staff for the required roles. By employing many candidates from the region, and through our commitment to Diversity and Inclusion in our hiring process, we ensured that the local community felt the impact of Birmingham 2022 in a huge way.”

Gi Group provided a range of services to support Birmingham 2022, including job profiling, onboarding, training, and outplacement support. All Birmingham 2022 staff were offered support with the transition to the next phase of their career once the Games came to an end in August.

“All these aspects,” says Sam Vaughan, Operations Manager at Gi Group, “were key to securing a positive legacy for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. Winning a REC award is no mean feat. It highlights the great work of so many people—both within Gi Group and the Birmingham 2022 Organising Committee—to ensure the community in Birmingham and the West Midlands felt the full impact of the event.”

Clare Miles, Director of HR for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games, said: “The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games was a fantastic celebration of sport in the city, and brought generations of citizens together.

“The work of Gi Group in employing almost 1,700 staff for Birmingham 2022 helped ensure a smooth operation. The full range of services provided meant that candidates were fully looked after and informed throughout the employment process – especially with the transition to their next roles after the Games came to an end in August 2022.”

In awarding GI Group with the Recruitment Team of the Year accolade, the REC cited that they were: “impressed with [the] organisation of volume recruitment, and the commitment to recruiting locally”. They were also incredibly impressed with: “Outplacement services, and with how the team dealt with D&I and unconscious bias.”

Addressing the REC Awards 2022, Neil Carberry, Chief Executive of the REC, said: “Competition for staff in the UK has been a real challenge throughout 2022 and skilled recruitment professionals are making a real difference for both the companies and workers the support. In tough times, it is important to celebrate the critical service our recruiters provide to millions of people in the UK every day.

“This year’s winners were exceptional, showcasing best in class recruitment at a time when it’s needed more than ever. Congratulations to everyone involved!”

For more information about Gi Group in the UK, please visit: uk.gigroup.com.

[1] 2021 figures – all figures included in this document are preliminary, pending certification by external auditors.

Gi Group Holding, one of the world’s largest multinational staffing companies, and active in more than 100 countries across the globe, has concluded the acquisition of Encore Personnel, a well-established, UK-based recruitment company.

Active for more than 20 years, Encore operates through 11 branches plus 22 managed service sites, offering temporary and permanent recruitment solutions, to clients across the UK. 

“It was always my preference that should Encore be acquired it would be by a world-class recruitment leader in our sector, that shared our vision and cultural values, I am pleased to say this is very evident with Gi Group Holding.” says Pete Taylor, Managing Director of Encore Personnel. 

Commenting on the acquisition, Stefano Colli-Lanzi, CEO and President of the Gi Group says: “This latest acquisition allows us to consolidate our position as a leading provider of recruitment services to the UK’s driving, industrial, and manufacturing sectors. It will enable us to become even more competitive and in turn, strengthens our position as a global player in the recruitment sector.” 

“I’m very excited to welcome Encore Partners to the Gi Group Holding family,” says Paulo Canoa, CEO and UK & Ireland Country Manager, “there are big opportunities for us to achieve synergies and to deliver solutions that truly respond to the increasingly complex needs of the UK market.” 

With revenues of €3.3 billion and a staff of over 6,000, the creation of the new holding company enables a more integrated and strategic approach for one of the world’s leading provider of services for the evolution of the labour market.

Today, Gi Group announced its evolution with the launch of Gi Group Holding (www.gigroupholding.com). Effective immediately, the new corporate brand further unifies the strategic approach and impact of Gi Group Holding solutions, which provides a full suite of staffing and recruitment services. Headquartered in Milan and counting over 6,000 employees, thanks to its direct presence, the group is active in 30 nations worldwide. The new Holding company – through its key brands – provides services to more than 20,000 companies generating revenues of €3.3 billion (2021 figures ), making it the 5th largest European staffing firm, and 16th worldwide. Collectively, over the past five years, between 2017-2021, the group has experienced an increase in revenues of 65% (+€1.3 billion). Against the backdrop of the current complex global human resources situation, these positive results – coupled with this important step in the company’s history – highlight the group’s leading position in the marketplace. Indeed, Gi Group Holding aims to create a sustainable, streamlined, and joyful Global Labour Market, reflecting the ever-changing needs of candidates and companies.

The core purpose of Gi Group Holding is to demonstrate value for “More than Work” by supporting candidates in their daily lives and promoting positive and open environments through a commitment to creating enjoyable and safe working environments, in turn providing collaborative workplaces where employees feel free to express themselves and propose new ideas and solutions.

Gi Group Holding, a leading global multi-brand HR and staffing company responds to the alarming humanitarian crisis in Ukraine with the announcement of We Stand for People, a campaign that puts into action the collective power of the Group’s passionate workforce and closely-knit network. Over the past weeks, the project was developed with the objective to bring together numerous strategic actions that embody the values of this humancentric company. These include providing on-the-ground support to refugees, the creation of an online information and recruitment hub for job seekers from Ukraine as well as activating a global fundraiser in support of Fundacja Gi Group, the group’s foundation in Poland. These actions aim to contribute a grain of salt in positively impacting the lives of an estimated 3.5 million refugees who have fled Ukraine since February 24th this year (UNHCR figures).

Marks Sattin specialises in sourcing the very best finance and technology talent for a variety of businesses – from global organisations through to growing SMEs. A key focus for its team in Amsterdam is to match talented finance and technology professionals at the mid-senior level with organisations looking to recruit these highly sort after skills.

In 2018, Marks Sattin was acquired by Gi Group – the Italian-based leading multinational staffing company – which is active in more than 50 countries including The Netherlands and is among the top six staffing companies in Europe. This acquisition is allowing the Marks Sattin brand to thrive and expand its geographical reach under the experience, security and backing of a strong international player in the global employment market.

The expansion will allow Marks Sattin to further supports its existing clients which already have a presence in The Netherlands with their hiring needs, while also using its vast experience to help organisations recruit the very best talent.

Matthew Wilcox, Managing Director of Marks Sattin comments: