CWS 3.0: August 10, 2011 - Vol. 3.19

Print

Randstad Buying Large U.S. Supplier

Randstad Holding NV, the world’s third-largest staffing firm based on 2010 global staffing revenue, announced plans on July 20 to buy SFN Group Inc., the world’s 24th-largest staffing firm, for $771 million. Both companies say the deal could expand services offered to clients.

“The executive management and I are confident that the combination of our two companies is a strong strategic fit that will not only deliver expanded service offerings for our clients in North America, but also creates opportunities to service them on a global basis,” SFN Group President and CEO Roy Krause said in a statement.

SFN Group’s operations are concentrated primarily in the U.S. Randstad operates in some 43 countries around the world.

More staffing buyers are seeking global solutions, Randstad wrote in its 2010 annual report. In addition, more than 20 percent of Randstad’s sales volume at the time was generated by international clients.

The acquisition of SFN Group is set to close in September.

SFN Group, based in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., provides manages services provider and recruitment process outsourcing services through its SourceRight Solutions brand. MSP and RPO accounted for 9.6 percent of SFN Group’s 2010 revenue of more than $2.0 billion. Temporary staffing represented 88.8 percent of revenue and permanent placement accounted for 1.6 percent.

SFN Group provides a range of professional and commercial staffing. Its brands include Technisource, The Mergis Group, Todays Office Professionals, Spherion Staffing Services and Tatum. The company changed its formal company name to SFN Group in February 2010.

Randstad provides a long list of professional and commercial staffing services. It had revenue of €14.18 billion (US$18.79 billion) in 2010. North America represented 13.0 percent of revenue.

Its brands in the United States include Randstad, Accountants International, B2B Workforce, Clinical One, Delta, Locum Medical, Sapphire Technologies, Think Resources and Compliance.

The company provides and MSP and RPO offerings through Randstad Managed Services.

Randstad’s last major acquisition was in October 2010 when it acquired FujiStaff of Japan, the world’s 38th-largest staffing firm, which had revenue of €461.0 million (US$620.2 million) in its fiscal year ended March 31, 2010. Randstad also acquired Vedior NV, at that time the fourth-largest staffing firm in the world, in 2008 for €3.51 billion (US$5.41 billion) in cash and stock.