British

Simon Wassall

Simon Wassall

Harvey Nash
European managing director

Simon Wassall has been with Harvey Nash for more than 20 years and joined the board in 2005.As European managing director, he is responsible for the UK and European Professional Recruitment operations. Prior to joining Harvey Nash, Wassall opened several new operations for Austin Benn, which led to his board appointment to a newly acquired advertising and marketing company.

Stephen Trigg

Stephen Trigg

Quanta Consultancy Services
CEO

Stephen Trigg, CEO of Hertfordshire, England based staffing firm Quanta Consultancy Services, began his recruitment career in 1974. He founded Intercity Consultants in 1982 and in 1986 he created I.C. Software in Switzerland. Both companies merged with Computer Search & Selection plc in 1991. Trigg founded Quantum Consultancy Services in 1992, followed by Quanta Consultancy Services in Switzerland in 1996. The company has won several awards including the Queen’s Award for Enterprise – International Trade in 2016 and in 2018 it was awarded the Princess Royal Training Award. Quanta was among SIA’s Best Staffing Firms to Work For in the UK in 2016.

Julia Robertson

Julia Robertson

Impellam Group
CEO

Julia Robertson was appointed CEO of the Impellam Group in April 2013. She joined Carlisle in 2000 following the acquisition of Tate. Following the 2008 Impellam merger, she was appointed as the divisional CEO of Impellam’s U.K. staffing businesses. Prior to Impellam/Carlisle, Robertson was chief executive of the Institute of Employment Consultants (now known as the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, a U.K. confederation of staffing firms), the professional body for the U.K. recruitment industry, and founded her own recruitment business, which was sold to Carlisle alongside Tate. Robertson is also a non-executive director, and sits on the board of trustees for Trinity Hospice.

Simon Coton

Simon Coton

NES Fircroft
COO
British

Staffing 100 Europe | 2020

As COO of NES Global Talent since 2008, Simon Coton has been a key part of the executive team, delivering the sale to private equity funds advised by AEA Investors in 2012, securing a number of refinancing deals, and making seven strategic and value-adding acquisitions. During his tenure, NES expanded its operations to 66 physical locations around the globe, expanded its sector focus, and grew its turnover to more than $1.8 billion. Most recently, he helped facilitate the September 2020 merger with technical recruitment firm Fircroft to form NES Fircroft, of which he remains COO. He first joined NES in 1995 as a recruiter.

Albert Ellis

Albert Ellis

Harvey Nash Group
CEO

Albert Ellis is the CEO of the Harvey Nash Group. Originally appointed to the board in 2000 as CFO, he became CEO in 2005. Ellis joined Harvey Nash in 1998 from Hays plc. Before that, he worked in the accounting and auditing profession after qualifying as a chartered accountant. He is on the board of Asia House and is an advisor at London City University’s Cass Business School for its information leadership course.

Carmen Watson

Carmen Watson

Pertemps
Chairperson

Carmen Watson joined Pertemps in 1976 as a secretary and by 1983 progressed to the boardroom as commercial director. From 1983 to 2000, Watson was responsible for the formation of a corporate business team and turnover grew tenfold to £323 million from £32 million. In 2000, Watson was named managing director and then became chairperson in 2012. A long-term supporter of diversity in the workplace, she is one of the foremost speakers on the value of women in the boardroom.

Kevin Freeguard

Kevin Freeguard

Gattaca
CEO

Kevin Freeguard was appointed CEO and a board member of UK-based Gattaca in October 2018. His experience within technology businesses, and the sector in general, was a key motivation for his joining a recruitment firm with a focus in the technology space. Freeguard has already put a plan in place for the specialist technology and engineering recruitment firm’s future; it includes simplifying operations, removing less stable and non-core businesses and building core resilient businesses such as UK engineering, UK IT and North American operations through the company’s Matchtech, Networkers and Gattaca Solutions brands. Gattaca reported 2018 group revenue of £667.5 million and has 810 employees worldwide in 13 offices.

Sandeep Dhillon

Sandeep Dhillon

Talmix
CEO
British

CEO of Talmix since June 2018, Sandeep Dhillon is committed to making the organisation the best solution for talent acquisition. He led the group to achieve continued quarter-on-quarter growth throughout the challenges of the pandemic, with 2021 shaping up to be another record year of revenue growth as demand from clients continues to accelerate across all markets. Prior to joining Talmix, Dhillon worked at a number of global companies in finance and consulting roles, including PwC and KPMG, and was also a business mentor for nonprofit Virgin StartUp.

Staffing 100 Europe | 2021

Johnathan Johnson

Johnathan Johnson

Fircroft
CEO

Johnathan Johnson is the chief executive officer of Fircroft. Johnson joined Fircroft in 1997 as a consultant and was promoted to operations director for the international oil and gas sector in 2001. Since taking the helm in 2005 from his father and company founder John Johnson, he has overseen the global expansion of the company. This growth continues in 2015 as Fircroft acquired CBE SA, a HR consultancy firm based in Mozambique and a part of a JV business. Fircroft operates in more than 60 countries with an extended services portfolio and reported an annual turnover of £933 million in 2014.

Julia Robertson

Julia Robertson

Impellam Group
CEO
British

Impellam Group CEO Julia Robertson has worked in staffing for her entire career and has enjoyed both entrepreneurial and corporate success. She founded her own recruitment company in 1986 and later joined Tate as managing director, where she developed her craft, subsequently selling both businesses to Carlisle Staffing Services, now the Impellam Group. Robertson became CEO of Impellam’s UK staffing and managed services businesses after the 2008 merger and was appointed group CEO in April 2013. She formerly served as CEO of the Institute of Employment Consultants (now known as the REC), the professional body for the UK recruitment industry.