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Recruitment business investor forging new "gold standard"

Australian recruitment agencies are highly sought-after by overseas buyers, but few have the necessary characteristics that make them a great acquisition target, says recruitment business investor James Caan. To address this, he has launched a startup partnership that aims to create a new "gold standard" breed of agencies.

Recruitment Entrepreneur has invested in Plus People (led by Phil Little) – its first Australian joint venture – and it expects to announce a second deal in the next few months.

Recruitment Entrepreneur soft-launched in Australia several years ago but has since changed leadership, with former Allegis Global Solutions BDM Steve Tolen joining as CEO this year. Tolen notes the business model now includes a local partner strategy, and "market readiness" is vastly different – "timing is everything".)

The company's model has three levels of investment, Caan tells Shortlist. Phase one typically features recruiters with seven-to-10 years' experience who want to start their own business...