MHR

What MHR does

MHR (formerly Midland HR) is a UK-based, family-owned technology company founded in 1984 and headquartered in Nottingham, providing HR, payroll, and finance software to over 1,400 organisations across the UK and Ireland. The company claims to support more than 5% of the total UK workforce and holds a Royal Warrant as Supplier of Payroll and HR Systems to His Majesty The King. Its customer base spans large enterprises and public sector bodies, with notable logos including the London School of Economics, Severn Trent, the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Sheffield City Council, and Nottingham Trent University.

The product portfolio centres on two core platforms: People First, a cloud-native, modular HR and payroll platform with AI-enabled capabilities such as AI check-ins, automated workflows, and real-time payroll; and iTrent, an established on-premise/hosted HR and payroll platform widely used in large enterprise and public sector deployments. Supporting modules include People First Learning (LXP), iTrent Salary Modelling, iTrent Shield (security), iTrent HR Chatbot, and Microsoft Finance, with an integration ecosystem of 60+ partners including Microsoft, Docebo, Wagestream, Broadbean, and GBG. MHR Labs functions as an internal research unit exploring AI agents, large language models, and cybersecurity implications.

MHR monetises primarily through annual software subscriptions priced on a modular, quote-based basis according to organisation size and selected functionality, supplemented by professional services (AI consultancy, digital transformation), outsourced/managed payroll services, and learning management revenues. Go-to-market is enterprise-focused direct sales in the UK and Ireland, complemented by event-driven demand generation through the annual World of Work events and content marketing via the Knowledge Hub and a media partnership with the Telegraph. The company is privately held with no disclosed institutional investment or parent company.

Name

MHR

Legal name

MHR International UK Limited

Website

https://mhrglobal.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

MHR is a UK-based, family-owned technology company founded in 1984, providing cloud and on-premise HR, payroll, and finance software to over 1,400 enterprise and public sector organisations across the UK and Ireland.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Human Capital Management Software

NAICS

Payroll Services (541214), Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services (54121)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370)

akta.pro primary industry

Human Capital Management (HCM) & Payroll Platforms (HDAEAEAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Core HR & HRIS (BPACAPAA), Payroll, Time & Attendance (BPACAPAB), Payroll Outsourcing & Pay Administration (Multi-country/Managed Payroll) (BPACAKAD), Managed Payroll Services (Full-Service Payroll Outsourcing) (BPAAAHAA)

Keywords

• HR software solutions
• Payroll processing software
• Workforce management systems
• Human capital management
• HR analytics platform

Headquarters

HQ city

Nottingham

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Software Subscriptions: Subscription-based access to People First and iTrent platforms with modular pricing based on organisation size and required functionality
2. Professional Services: Consultancy services including AI consultancy, digital transformation, and implementation support
3. Outsourced Payroll: Managed payroll services for organisations preferring to outsource payroll processing
4. Learning Solutions: Learning management system and content delivery through Docebo-powered LMS integration

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

MHR provides cloud-based and on-premise HR, payroll, and finance software platforms—People First and iTrent—used by over 1,400 organisations across the UK and Ireland. Its offering combines core HR, real-time payroll, workforce management, learning, analytics, and Microsoft Finance modules with implementation, consultancy, and outsourced payroll services.

Product overview

MHR offers a platform-plus-modules portfolio of HR, payroll, and finance software. The core products are People First (a cloud-based, modular HR and payroll platform) and iTrent (a powerful, flexible HR and payroll platform for large and enterprise organisations). Both platforms share a common architecture and are supported by the same integrations ecosystem. People First serves as MHR's latest cloud-native offering, while iTrent is the established flagship solution. Additional modules include People First Learning (learning experience platform), iTrent Salary Modelling (pay forecasting), iTrent Shield (enhanced cybersecurity), and iTrent HR Chatbot (conversational AI). Microsoft Finance extends the platform into financial planning and reporting. MHR also offers professional services including AI Consultancy and Digital Transformation consultancy. The portfolio is unified by MHR's AI vision, which integrates AI capabilities into daily workflows, and complemented by MHR Labs, the company's research initiative exploring emerging AI technologies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• People First: Cloud-based, modular HR and payroll platform
• iTrent
• Microsoft Finance
• MHR Labs
• MHR Learning

Products and services

• People First Cloud-based, modular HR and payroll platform from MHR that unifies HR, payroll, finance, learning, analytics and employee experience into a single intelligent platform with AI-enabled capabilities such as automated workflows, AI check-ins, and real-time payroll processing. Targeted at organisations seeking an end-to-end workforce management solution.
• iTrent Award-winning, well-established HR and payroll software for large and enterprise organisations, providing reliable, secure and legislation-compliant HR and payroll functionality with modules covering workforce management, recruitment, HR chatbot, salary modelling, and enhanced security.
• Microsoft Finance Finance software module powered by Microsoft technologies that provides holistic financial planning, reporting and analysis integrated with MHR's HR and payroll data.
• People First Learning Learning Experience Platform (LXP) module within People First that helps organisations create engaging training programs, personalised learning pathways, and compliance training, delivered with automated, personalised learning aligned with employee development needs and business objectives.
• Outsourced Payroll Managed payroll service offering for organisations that prefer to outsource payroll processing to MHR rather than run it in-house, leveraging the same People First and iTrent technology.
• AI Consultancy Stand-alone consultancy service from MHR that helps organisations understand and implement AI within their HR and workforce operations, forming part of MHR's broader AI vision.
• Digital Transformation Consultancy Consultancy service from MHR that guides organisations through digital transformation programmes, supporting the transition from legacy HR and payroll systems to modern AI-enabled platforms.
• Workforce Management Suite of workforce management capabilities within the MHR platform designed to help organisations get the right people in the right place at the right time, covering time and attendance, rostering, flexi-time, and scheduling.

Quantifiable outcome

• 95% staff adoption rate for self-service model at LSE
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers18 records

Segments11 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

AI capability5 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and strategic.

• WagestreamcoreTechnology or IntegrationWagestream integrates with iTrent to provide flexible pay access allowing employees to access earned wages before payday. Also offers financial information and advice supporting financial wellbeing initiatives.
• BroadbeancoreTechnology or IntegrationGlobal leader in job distribution and posting analytics. Multi-posting solution integrates seamlessly with iTrent for bulk job posting, saving time for recruiters and providing reporting on channel performance.
• Grosvenor TechnologycoreTechnology or IntegrationHCM terminals integrate with iTrent's paid, flexi-time and rostering modules, automating work patterns and streamlining time-saving processes for shift-based workforces.
• GBG (Loqate)coreTechnology or IntegrationIntegration with GBG fixes mileage expense claim inaccuracies (60% inaccurate claims reported). Provides postcode validation for journey recording and expanded into bank detail verification supporting onboarding and fraud prevention.
• DocebocoreTechnology or IntegrationDocebo-powered LMS operates outside formal training limitations, bringing social learning and content curation into an LMS that drives productivity with automated, personalised learning paths.
• Document Logistix (DLX)coreTechnology or IntegrationiTrent Document Manager (powered by DLX) consolidates and streamlines paperwork-based admin tasks, saving time, money, freeing office space, and providing additional security layers for sensitive documentation.
• Microsoft Dynamics 365strategicTechnology or IntegrationPeople First integrates with Microsoft Dynamics 365 for organisations already using this for project management and finance, providing seamless data flow across systems.
• MicrosoftstrategicTechnology or IntegrationMicrosoft Finance solutions integrated with MHR platform. Microsoft Teams used for graduate interview process. Azure-based cloud infrastructure supporting platform capabilities.
• Telegraph Media GroupstrategicGTM or Marketing PartnerWorld of Work 2050 content partnership with Telegraph Media Group exploring future of work trends and positioning MHR as thought leader in HR technology space.
• iTrent ShieldcoreTechnology or IntegrationAdditional enhanced security module providing extra layers of security to defend against cyberattacks for iTrent customers.
• iTrent Salary ModellingcoreTechnology or IntegrationForecasting tool integrated with iTrent helping organisational planning for even the most complex pay structures.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Sage Group: Sage is a UK-headquartered provider of accounting, payroll, and HR software serving SMBs and mid-market. Sage HR and Sage Payroll directly overlap with MHR's People First platform in the UK market for small and mid-sized employers.
• Zellis: Zellis is a UK-focused HR, payroll, and workforce management software provider (formerly part of NorthgateArinso). It competes head-to-head with MHR's iTrent in UK enterprise and public sector, including outsourced payroll services.
• IRIS Software Group: IRIS is a UK-based provider of HR, payroll, and accountancy software, with similar customers (accountancy firms, SMBs, mid-market employers). It directly overlaps MHR's payroll and HR software offerings in the UK.
• Ciphr: Ciphr is a UK HR, payroll, and learning software provider targeting mid-market and enterprise organizations. It offers comparable functionality to MHR's iTrent with focus on workforce management and people analytics in the UK.
• Personio: Personio is a European HR and people operations platform serving SMBs and mid-market. While Germany-founded, it has expanded aggressively into the UK, competing with MHR's People First platform for cloud-native HR buyers.
• SD Worx: SD Worx is a European payroll and HR services provider headquartered in Belgium with significant UK operations. It competes with MHR in both software (HCM) and managed payroll services across European markets.

Broad incumbents

• ADP: ADP is the global leader in payroll and HCM, with major UK operations including ADP Payroll and ADP Workforce Now. It competes broadly with MHR across all segments and represents the dominant incumbent in outsourced payroll.
• Workday: Workday is a global enterprise HCM and finance cloud platform. While serving larger enterprises, it competes with MHR's iTrent for large UK organizations pursuing unified cloud HR/payroll/finance systems.

Emerging players

• HiBob: HiBob is an Israel-founded modern HRIS platform for mid-market and high-growth companies. It competes with MHR's People First for cloud-first, employee-experience-focused HR buyers in the UK market.

Regional players

• Employment Hero: Employment Hero is an Australia-founded HR, payroll, and employee benefits platform expanding into the UK. It targets SMBs and mid-market with a similar cloud-native HCM and payroll proposition to MHR's People First.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/mhr_solutions
• Facebookfacebook.com/MHRSolutions

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about MHR