Premier plans to double its recruitment trade by 2012

CORK-BASED recruitment company Premier Group is planning to more than double the size of its business by 2012.

In an interview with The Irish Times, managing director Pat Fitzgerald said he wants to boost the company's net fees to more than €250 million a year and to increase staff numbers from the current level of 820 to over 2,000.

Premier, a private, unlimited company, recently doubled in size with the £45.2 million acquisition of UK-listed recruiter Imprint.

That boosted its net fees to more than €100 million and Mr Fitzgerald said it now wants to kick on and double its size again over the next four years.

"We expect by 2012 to have over 2,000 people and to have net fees in excess of €250 million," he said. "That's going to give us turnover of well north of €600 million. While those targets are aggressive, and aspirational, they are also to the same levels of percentage growth that we've achieved in every three- to four-year period for the past 15 or 16 years."

The acquisition of Imprint gave Premier its first foothold in Asia. The UK company has offices in Tokyo, Singapore, Hong Kong, Sydney and Dubai, employing about 150 staff.

"Asia is an area where we see significant growth potential and expect to take the 150 number to about 400, 500 people over the next couple of years," Mr Fitzgerald said. "Ultimately Ireland is constrained by size. It's a great market and we will continue to grow and continue to invest here, but to achieve the growth levels that we need to achieve, we have to look much further afield."

Premier currently employs about 250 staff in Ireland.

Mr Fitzgerald said its expansion strategy is being driven by the needs of its clients, particularly in the financial services arena.

"We believe that the major banks will ultimately have a couple of suppliers globally and they will be the same suppliers, be it in Singapore, Hong Kong, London, New York, wherever.

"If we can accelerate the huge success of Morgan McKinley in London, we have a huge opportunity to challenge the large global players," Mr Fitzgerald said.

Premier's managing director said the firm would concentrate on bedding down the Imprint acquisition over the next 18 months but would then look at other acquisitions.

"I certainly think we could do the same size deal in the next 24 to 36 months," he said.

Imprint operates half a dozen recruitment brands while Premier has five. Mr Fitzgerald said it planned to review its branding and choose one name that it could take to the global stage. "It could be Morgan McKinley or it could be Premier. A final decision hasn't yet been made."