SF Recruitment
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1998
- HeadquartersBirmingham, United Kingdom
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
SF Recruitment firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- SF Recruitment
- Legal name
- SF Partners
- Website
- https://sfrecruitment.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1998
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
SF Recruitment industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Executive Search and Specialist Recruitment Services
- NAICS
- Employment Placement Agencies and Executive Search Services (56131), Executive Search Services (561312), Employment Placement Agencies (561311)
- SIC
- Services-Employment Agencies (7361)
- akta.pro primary industry
- General Permanent Placement (Multi-Industry) (BPACAFAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- C-Suite & Board Search (BPACAAAA), Functional Leadership Search (HR/Finance/Legal/Marketing/Sales/Ops) (BPACAAAB)
Keywords
Where SF Recruitment is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Birmingham
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
SF Recruitment business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Recruitment Placement Fees: The company generates revenue through placement fees for successful candidate placements. As a specialist recruitment firm operating since 1998, they charge clients for filling positions across their specialisms including executive search, transformation, finance, engineering, technology, and professional services roles.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels4 records
SF Recruitment product offering
Product offeringCore offering
SF Recruitment (rebranding to SF Partners) is a specialist recruitment firm that places candidates across six disciplines: Executive Search, Transformation, Finance, Engineering, Technology, and Professional Services. The company serves clients in the UK and Europe via dedicated specialism teams conducting retained and contingent searches for senior leadership and professional roles, including fractional FD/CFO engagements for flexible senior financial leadership. Revenue is earned through placement fees from client organizations for successful candidate hires.
Product overview
SF Partners is a specialist recruitment services company operating as a single unified service offering rather than a software platform. The company provides executive search and professional recruitment across six distinct specialisms: Executive Search, Transformation, Finance, Engineering, Technology, and Professional Services. These service lines operate collectively under the SF Partners brand, which rebranded from SF Recruitment in 2024 after more than two decades in the UK and European recruitment market. The company positions itself as building lasting partnerships that deliver real results for clients and candidates alike.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Executive Search Specialist executive-level recruitment service focused on placing C-suite, board-level, and senior leadership professionals across industries in the UK and Europe. Designed for enterprises and organizations seeking confidential retained search mandates for critical leadership appointments.
- Transformation Recruitment Recruitment services supporting organizational transformation, change management, and operational improvement initiatives. Targets organizations undergoing digital and operational transformation that require specialized change leadership talent.
- Finance Recruitment Specialist finance recruitment covering financial leadership, accounting, and corporate finance roles at all levels—from junior accountants to CFOs, FDs, and financial controllers. Includes fractional FD/CFO placement offering for flexible senior financial leadership.
- Engineering Recruitment Technical engineering recruitment services spanning multiple engineering disciplines and seniority levels. Targets engineering firms and technical departments across the UK and Europe needing qualified engineering talent.
- Technology Recruitment Specialist technology sector recruitment focused on placing data analysts, tech leadership, digital transformation professionals, and IT staff. Serves tech companies and organizations undergoing digital transformation across the UK and Europe.
- Professional Services Recruitment Recruitment services for professional services firms, consulting practices, and advisory businesses across the UK and Europe. Covers consulting, advisory, and support roles at all levels within professional services firms.
Companies that use SF Recruitment
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles6 records
SF Recruitment technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
SF Recruitment partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators2 records
Recent moves3 records
Expansion highlights4 records
SF Recruitment competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Michael Page: UK-founded specialist recruitment firm with a multi-discipline permanent placement model across finance, technology, and professional services — directly comparable to SF Partners' structure and geography.
- Morgan McKinley: Specialist recruitment firm with finance, accounting, and technology desks in the UK and Ireland, competing head-to-head for mid-market and senior finance and transformation mandates.
- Marks Sattin: UK-focused specialist recruiter concentrated in finance, accounting, and executive search — directly comparable in geography, specialism, and senior placement focus.
- Badenoch + Clark: UK & European executive search and professional recruitment firm operating across executive, finance, and transformation roles with a comparable specialist boutique model.
- Frazer Jones: Specialist UK & European HR and finance executive search firm, intersecting directly with SF Partners' executive search and functional leadership offerings.
- La Fosse: UK-headquartered specialist recruitment firm focused on technology, digital, and transformation hires — directly overlapping SF Partners' Technology and Transformation desks.
- Ambitious (Ambition Group): Global specialist recruitment firm with strong UK presence across executive search, finance, accounting, and technology — competing for the same mid-market multi-discipline mandates as SF Partners.
Broad incumbents
- Reed: Long-established UK recruitment group with deep multi-sector coverage including executive, finance, and technology desks, competing for similar UK & European mid-market mandates.
- Hays: Listed UK-headquartered specialist recruiter with a strong European footprint across the same core disciplines SF Partners targets, including finance, technology, and transformation hiring.
- Robert Half: Global specialist staffing firm with a particularly strong finance and accounting practice that overlaps directly with SF Partners' finance specialism and executive finance placements.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
SF Recruitment social profiles
Digital presenceSF Recruitment financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
SF Recruitment leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
SF Recruitment funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
SF Recruitment M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about SF Recruitment
What does SF Recruitment do?
SF Recruitment (rebranding to SF Partners) is a specialist recruitment firm that places candidates across six disciplines: Executive Search, Transformation, Finance, Engineering, Technology, and Professional Services. The company serves clients in the UK and Europe via dedicated specialism teams conducting retained and contingent searches for senior leadership and professional roles, including fractional FD/CFO engagements for flexible senior financial leadership. Revenue is earned through placement fees from client organizations for successful candidate hires.
Is SF Recruitment a public or private company?
SF Recruitment is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was SF Recruitment founded?
SF Recruitment was founded in 1998. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is SF Recruitment based?
SF Recruitment is headquartered in Birmingham, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does SF Recruitment make money?
One revenue line is on record: recruitment Placement Fees.
Who are SF Recruitment's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Michael Page, Morgan McKinley, Marks Sattin, Badenoch + Clark, Frazer Jones, La Fosse and Ambitious (Ambition Group). Broad incumbents are Reed, Hays and Robert Half.
Does SF Recruitment have an API?
No public API is recorded for SF Recruitment.
What industry is SF Recruitment in?
SF Recruitment's product category is Executive Search and Specialist Recruitment Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPACAFAA, General Permanent Placement (Multi-Industry), with a secondary code of BPACAAAA, C-Suite & Board Search. Its NAICS code is 56131 and its SIC code is 7361.