What RecruitFirst does

RecruitFirst is a recruitment and talent solutions agency operating as a brand within HRnetGroup, a Singapore-listed parent (SGX: CHZ) founded in 1992. The company delivers 360 full-coverage human resources services across 23 industry specializations — including talent search, temporary and contract staffing, permanent placement, executive search, campus recruitment, payroll, RPO, and HR consulting — through a team of 150+ specialized consultants and dedicated team leaders across 8 Asian cities (Singapore, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, Taipei, Jakarta, Seoul, and Kaohsiung). It serves both employers (across large enterprise, mid-market, and SMB segments) and job seekers, with a horizontally diversified customer base and no disclosed anchor client.

The company has built a proprietary digital tool suite to support its recruitment workflow: CANDID (a real-time candidate database), ELLA (electronic offer letter system enabling same-day offer acceptance and onboarding), Knock-Knock (selfie-based online attendance), eToS (electronic contract signing integrated with HelloSign), eINVOICE (electronic invoicing), iHRS (internal HR database), and HEARTBEATS (candidate feedback rating system). Together these tools cover job posting, candidate matching, offer management, onboarding, attendance tracking, contract execution, invoicing, and performance evaluation, forming an end-to-end digital recruitment ecosystem rather than a standalone software product.

RecruitFirst generates revenue on a professional services, commission/fee-based model, with customized quote-based pricing tied to service scope, industry, and geography. The business benefits from distribution leverage via its parent HRnetGroup's 20-brand portfolio and 18-city footprint, with operational scale evidenced by 11,000+ annual placements, an NPS of 84, and a 4.8/5 Google rating across 3,723 reviews. Required employment agency licenses are maintained in Singapore (EA 13C6342), Hong Kong (EA 79922), and Taiwan (Grade A private employment service accreditation, 2021), supporting regulated cross-border hiring.

Name

RecruitFirst

Legal name

RecruitFirst Pte Ltd

Website

https://recruitfirst.co

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

RecruitFirst is a recruitment and talent solutions agency and brand of Singapore-listed HRnetGroup, providing 360-degree hiring services across 23 specializations in 8 Asian cities via 150+ specialized consultants and a proprietary digital workflow tool suite.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Recruitment and Staffing Services

NAICS

Employment Placement Agencies (561311), Employment Placement Agencies and Executive Search Services (56131), Human Resources Consulting Services (541612)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361), Services-Help Supply Services (7363), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

General Permanent Placement (Multi-Industry) (BPACAFAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Talent Acquisition (Recruiting) & Applicant Tracking (ATS) (BPACAPAD), Recruiting Administration Outsourcing (Recruitment Support, Scheduling, Onboarding Ops) (BPACAKAG), Sales, Marketing & Customer Success Direct Hire (BPACAFAD), Employer Brand & Recruitment Marketing Creative Agencies (MPAAAAAM)

Keywords

• Recruitment services
• Talent acquisition
• Staffing solutions
• Executive search
• Permanent placement

Headquarters

HQ city

Singapore

HQ country

Singapore

HQ region

Asia

Offices8 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Recruitment and Staffing Services: 360 full-coverage services for all human resources functions including talent search, temporary staffing, contract staffing, permanent placement, executive search, campus recruitment, employer branding, HR deployment, payroll services, HR consulting, and corporate training

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

RecruitFirst is a 360-degree recruitment and talent solutions agency operating across 8 Asian cities, providing end-to-end human resources services to employers in 23 industry specializations. Its services span permanent placement, temporary and contract staffing, executive search, campus recruitment, recruitment process outsourcing (RPO), payroll, HR outsourcing, HR consulting, employer branding, and corporate training, supported by a proprietary suite of digital tools (CANDID, ELLA, Knock-Knock, eToS, eINVOICE, iHRS, HEARTBEATS) that automate candidate matching, offers, contracts, attendance, invoicing, and feedback.

Product overview

RecruitFirst is a recruitment and talent solutions agency operating as part of HRnetGroup. The company provides 360-degree human resources services across 23 specializations in 8 cities (Singapore, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, Shanghai, Taipei, Jakarta, Seoul, and Kaohsiung). The product portfolio consists of a digital recruitment platform complemented by seven proprietary tools: CANDID (candidate database), ELLA (electronic offer letter system), Knock-Knock (online attendance check-in), eToS (electronic contract signing via HelloSign), eINVOICE (electronic invoicing), iHRS (internal HR database), and HEARTBEATS (candidate feedback rating system). Together these tools form an end-to-end digital recruitment ecosystem covering job posting, candidate matching, offer management, onboarding, attendance tracking, contract execution, invoicing, and performance evaluation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Permanent Placement Recruitment End-to-end recruitment for full-time, permanent employees across 23 industry specializations, from entry-level to senior director roles (e.g., SGD 14,000-16,000 Associate Director, Organization Development placements). Targeted at employers seeking long-term hires across Asia.
• Temporary and Contract Staffing Flexible workforce solutions providing temporary and contract staff for short-term, project-based, and seasonal needs across 8 Asian cities. Includes dispatch management of 42,998 employees under HRnetGroup. Targets employers needing workforce flexibility across operational and administrative roles.
• Executive Search Senior-level executive search services targeting C-suite, Vice President, Director, and other senior leadership mandates. Sourced by specialized consultants with sector expertise across 23 industry specializations, serving enterprise and strategic clients across Asia.
• Campus Recruitment Graduate and entry-level hiring programs with campus engagement activities. Supports employer brand awareness at universities and structured early-career talent pipelines. Targeted at employers building entry-level talent benches across Asian markets.
• Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO) Full or partial outsourcing of the recruitment function for clients needing dedicated recruiting capacity. Includes end-to-end process ownership from requisition through offer and onboarding for multi-geography employers across Asia.
• Payroll and HR Outsourcing Payroll management and HR outsourcing services for placed temporary and contract employees. Includes HR administration, employee information management via the iHRS platform, and ongoing workforce administration. Targeted at employers needing to outsource back-office HR functions.
• HR Deployment and Consulting Strategic HR advisory and HR resource deployment services, including HR consulting engagements for organizational design and workforce strategy across Asian markets. Targeted at mid-market and enterprise clients seeking strategic HR expertise beyond transactional recruitment.
• Corporate Training Corporate and professional training programs for employers and workforce development, covering both upskilling of placed hires and broader learning needs of organizations across the 8-city footprint.
• Employer Branding Employer brand development and positioning services to help clients attract talent in competitive Asian labor markets. Includes content marketing support, social media positioning, and candidate experience design.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 11,000 roles placed in a year
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature7 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• HRnetGroupcoreOthersRecruitFirst is a brand of HRnetGroup, a Singapore-listed company (SGX: CHZ) founded in 1992. HRnetGroup operates 20 brands in recruitment and talent solutions across 18 Asian cities including Singapore, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Beijing, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Suzhou, Taipei, Tokyo, Seoul, Ho Chi Minh City, Xi'an, Hsinchu, Chengdu, and Kaohsiung. The group has 900+ consultants and manages 42,998 dispatched employees.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Robert Walters: London-headquartered specialist recruitment firm with deep Asia-Pacific presence (including Singapore, HK, Malaysia, China, Japan, Indonesia). Operates permanent placement, contract and interim, and executive search across similar industry verticals under a multi-brand structure analogous to HRnetGroup.
• Hays: Global recruitment firm with significant Asia operations (Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, China, Japan). Specializes in skilled professional and middle-management placement, paralleling RecruitFirst's 23 specializations model. Direct competitor for mid-market and enterprise permanent placement mandates.
• Michael Page: Global recruitment firm with strong Asia footprint (Singapore, HK, Malaysia, Indonesia, China, Taiwan, Korea, Japan). Mid-to-senior professional recruitment across the same vertical industry bands RecruitFirst serves. Closest direct comparable on multi-geography, multi-specialization model.
• Spring Professional (Adecco Specialty): Adecco-owned mid-to-senior professional recruitment brand with presence across Asia. Competes directly for permanent placement and executive search mandates with a similar specialization model in IT, engineering, finance, and life sciences verticals.

Broad incumbents

• ManpowerGroup: One of the largest global staffing firms with operations across all RecruitFirst markets. Provides permanent placement, temporary staffing, and RPO at greater scale than RecruitFirst but with a broader, less-specialized portfolio. Key incumbent in the Asia permanent placement segment.
• Adecco: Swiss-headquartered global staffing leader with operations across Asia. Competes with RecruitFirst in permanent placement and contract staffing across the same enterprise client base, though at much greater scale and broader industry coverage.
• Randstad: Dutch global staffing firm with significant Asia-Pacific presence (Singapore, HK, Malaysia, China, Japan, Australia). Competes with RecruitFirst across permanent, temporary, and in-house/RPO services; operates at much larger scale but with less industry specialization per market.
• Recruit Holdings: Japanese HR/recruitment conglomerate owning Indeed, Glassdoor, and multiple Asia staffing brands (RGF). Largest Asia-headquartered recruitment group; competes with RecruitFirst on both staffing services and increasingly through platform-based candidate sourcing that threatens traditional agency economics.

Emerging players

• Cielo Talent: Global RPO and recruitment process outsourcing firm with growing Asia operations. Overlaps with RecruitFirst's RPO offering (mentioned) and competes for enterprise outsourcing mandates; broader global footprint but smaller Asia bench.

Regional players

• 104 Corporation: Taiwan-based HR services firm operating recruitment platforms and HR outsourcing. Relevant as a regional competitor in Taiwan where RecruitFirst has offices (Taipei, Hsinchu) and won its Grade-A accreditation, though 104's primary market is Taiwan-only.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/recruitfirst
• Facebookfacebook.com/RecruitFirstSG

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 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 RecruitFirst