Irish Recruiters Named Staffing Industry EU Leaders

Ireland’s National Recruitment Federation (ERF) has had two of its board members acknowledged as Top 100 European Business Leaders in the staffing industry sector.

Geraldine King, the ERF CEO, and Frank Farrelly, the organisation’s President and co-founder of Sigmar Recruitment, have both been named on the prestigious 2019 Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA) European Staffing 100 list. 

In their ERF roles, Geraldine and Frank address industry development as well as labour market issues such as barriers to employment for certain groups in society, employment legislation, and investment in lifelong education and labour market skills.

As COO of Sigmar Recruitment, Frank leads a team of more than 140 recruitment professionals in specialist teams across offices in Dublin, Cork, Galway, Tralee and Waterford. 

Since the company’s management buy-out in 2009, he has helped grow the business fivefold.  In 2018, the company launched Sigmar IT International and formed a strategic partnership with French staffing firm Groupe Adéquat. 

In her ten years with the national industry body, Geraldine has focused on expanding member services and developing a full academic career path for recruitment.  She helped introduce the accredited certificate in recruitment practice and led the ERF to develop the first-ever undergraduate degree for recruiters, which will be available in January 2020.

Geraldine was awarded the James Kilbaine award for outstanding contribution to the recruitment industry in 2018.

In terms of gender diversity, the ERF CEO is one of just twenty-three women to feature on this year’s European honours list, produced by the global authority on staffing and workforce solutions.

However, of the five Irish professionals included in this year’s listing, four are women.

Recruitment professionals and ERF members here who also featured on the honours list include Anne Heraty of Cpl Resources and Shona McManus, CEO and owner of Osborne.  In January 2019, Osborne opened its sixth operation, a new office in Cork, with McManus currently also President of Drogheda Chamber of Commerce.

Anne Heraty who has been CEO of Cpl Resources plc since founding the company in 1989 is similarly acknowledged as an outstanding figure in recruitment.  Ireland’s largest recruitment company, Cpl Resources now comprises 22 brands and 48 offices in several countries across Europe, employing over 400 specialist recruiters.

Irish woman, Rosaleen Blair, the founder and CEO of Alexander Mann Solutions, also makes the list of industry leaders for her London-based global talent outsourcing and consultancy business. 

Now in its seventh year, the Staffing Industry Analysts list recognises individuals taking the staffing industry forward, and the impact and influence they have on the workforce solutions arena in Europe, helping to shape what is a €172 billion European market.

“Having two of the ERF executive included in this year’s industry roll of honour is very satisfying and reflects the way in which Irish recruitment is rising to the challenges of skills shortages, new ways of working and market needs,” Geraldine King says.

King also welcomed the fact that four of the leading Irish professionals acknowledged in the industry roll of honour are women.

“This reflects the opportunity the recruitment sector represents for women to thrive in their chosen career, and the great standing and respect there is for Irish women working at the very top of this industry”.   

About Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA)

Founded in 1989, SIA is a global advisor on staffing and workforce solutions, as well as providing training and accreditation for staffing professionals.  Their proprietary research covers all categories of employed and non-employed work including temporary staffing and independent contracting. 

A division of the international business media company, Crain Communications Inc., SIA is headquartered in California, with European offices in London.

The full list of the Top 100 Staffing Industry Leaders for 2019 can be accessed here.