What Consult does

Consult Search & Selection Ltd is a UK-based specialist recruitment consultancy operating since 2003 across ten narrowly-defined verticals: Medical Devices, Scientific, Dental, Audiology, Animal Health, Clinical, Optical, Engineering, Medical Aesthetics, and Support Services. The firm delivers permanent placement, executive search, and managed contractor solutions to employers globally, with active placement coverage spanning the UK, Republic of Ireland, EMEA, the US, APAC, and LATAM. Its customer base includes enterprise clients such as 3M UK, Straumann Group, Dentsply Sirona, Hologic, B. Braun, Avantor, GN Hearing, WS Audiology, and GenesisCare, alongside mid-market accounts such as Legume Technology, MCS Laboratories, and Dental Beauty Partners.

The business model combines contingency permanent placement fees with managed services revenue from contractor workforce programmes. A flagship engagement illustrates the managed services arm: Consult managed 75+ contractors at peak across 10 UK locations for 3M UK, including payroll administration, fleet management, and contractor reviews. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and is negotiated per engagement based on role seniority, sector, and search complexity. Go-to-market is sales-led and relationship-driven, supported by dedicated vertical consultants, a SEO-optimised jobs portal with regional filters, an active LinkedIn/Twitter/Instagram/Facebook presence, and participation in sector events including London Vet Show, 100% Optical, BDCDS, IDS Cologne, and IMCAS Paris.

Organisationally, the company is led by CEO Michelle Lally with a Director (Nicola Elliott) and a Managing Partner for Executive Search, alongside a team of approximately 16 named consultants organised by vertical. The registered office is in Sheffield (Consult House, 4 Hayland St) and the operational headquarters is in Leeds city centre (Consult House, 9 Bond Court). In September 2025, Consult and Medexec merged into Compass Recruitment Solutions (CRS), a recruitment group backed by private equity firm Cow Corner, marking a transition from founder-led ownership to an institutionally-backed consolidation platform.

Name

Consult

Legal name

Consult Search & Selection Ltd

Website

https://consultsearch.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Consult Search & Selection Ltd is a UK-based specialist recruitment consultancy founded in 2003 that places permanent, executive, and contract talent across ten healthcare, scientific, and medical verticals for enterprise and mid-market clients globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialist Recruitment Services

NAICS

Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (54), Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416), Human Resources Consulting Services (541612)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361)

akta.pro primary industry

Professional & Technical Direct Hire (IT, Engineering, Finance, Healthcare) (BPACAFAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Manufacturing, MSAT & Operations Staffing (API/Biologics/Cell & Gene) (HLAGAOAL)

Keywords

• Specialist recruitment services
• Executive search consultancy
• Healthcare talent acquisition
• Medical device recruitment
• Managed contractor staffing

Headquarters

HQ city

Sheffield

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Permanent Placement Recruitment: Contingency-based permanent placement fees, earning success fees upon candidate placement.
2. Contractor/Temporary Staffing: Managed contractor solutions including payroll, fleet management, and contractor reviews for clients like 3M.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Consult provides specialist global recruitment consultancy services, placing executive, commercial, technical, scientific, and clinical candidates into permanent and contract roles across ten niche verticals: Medical Devices, Scientific, Dental, Audiology, Animal Health, Clinical, Optical, Engineering, Medical Aesthetics, and Support Services. The firm also delivers managed contractor/temporary staffing solutions including payroll, fleet management, and face-to-face contractor reviews for enterprise clients such as 3M UK. Services are delivered via direct sales engagement across the UK, EMEA, US, APAC, and LATAM regions.

Product overview

Consult is a specialist global recruitment consultancy that provides talent acquisition and executive search services across specialized healthcare, medical, and scientific sectors. Rather than a software product company with distinct modules, Consult offers recruitment services organized by industry focus areas: Medical Devices, Scientific, Dental, Audiology, Animal Health, Clinical, Optical, Engineering, Medical Aesthetics, Support Services, and Executive Search. Their offering consists of recruitment consulting services, candidate sourcing, executive search, contractor solutions, and HR support—not a technology product platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Permanent Placement Recruitment
• Contractor/Temporary Staffing Solutions
• Executive Search Services
• Audiology Sector Recruitment
• Medical Device & HealthTech Recruitment
• Dental Sector Recruitment
• Scientific & Laboratory Recruitment
• Animal Health Recruitment
• Medical Aesthetics Recruitment
• Optical & Ophthalmology Recruitment
• Clinical & Dental Practice Recruitment

Quantifiable outcome

• Managed 75+ contractors at peak across 10 UK locations for 3M UK
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers24 records

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles7 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Broad incumbents

• Compass Recruitment Solutions (CRS): Parent platform into which Consult merged in September 2025; CRS is a UK-based recruitment group backed by Cow Corner PE that consolidates specialist recruitment brands, providing direct structural comparability and the most immediate operating peer.
• Real Staffing (part of SThree): Global life sciences and healthcare recruitment brand within SThree plc, placing candidates across medical devices, pharma, biotech and clinical research. Comparable in end-market (medical devices, scientific) but with substantially larger international scale.
• Hays Life Sciences: Life sciences and healthcare division of Hays plc, one of the largest global staffing groups. Comparable in serving pharmaceutical, biotech and medical device clients, but as part of a much broader, generalist portfolio.
• Michael Page (PageGroup): Global professional recruitment firm with dedicated healthcare and life sciences coverage. Comparable as a competitor for mid-to-senior commercial and leadership roles in healthcare/scientific verticals, but with much broader industry coverage and deeper international footprint.

Direct peers

• Planet Pharma: US-based specialist staffing provider for pharmaceutical, medical device and clinical research sectors. Comparable in vertical specialization and in providing both permanent and contract staffing solutions to regulated life sciences clients.
• Barrington James: Specialist global recruitment firm operating across medical aesthetics, dental and healthcare verticals. Highly comparable given nearly identical vertical mix and similar international placement model.
• CK Group: Specialist UK recruitment firm focused on scientific, life sciences and clinical sectors. Closely comparable in targeting pharmaceutical, biotech, and laboratory clients for technical and commercial roles — directly overlapping Consult's Scientific and Clinical practices.
• Carrot Recruitment: UK recruitment specialist focused on medical aesthetics, dental and pharmaceutical verticals. Highly comparable given overlapping vertical focus (aesthetics, dental) and similar specialist-only positioning within healthcare-adjacent markets.
• Hyper Recruitment Solutions: UK-based specialist recruitment firm focused on pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device industries. Comparable in serving scientific and medical device employers with permanent and contract placements.
• Cpl Life Sciences: Specialist life sciences recruitment arm of the Cpl Resources group, placing candidates across pharmaceutical, biotech, medical device and clinical research organisations in Europe. Comparable vertical focus and similar multi-region delivery model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Consult_Search
• Facebookfacebook.com/ConsultSearch
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/consultsearch
• Instagraminstagram.com/Consult_Search

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles22 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 Consult