Expertum
Expertum is a Hamburg-based, family-owned HR services group founded in 1987 that provides temporary staffing, direct placement, and managed staffing solutions (including RPO and freelancer placement) to industrial companies in Germany and Austria across machinery, chemicals/pharma, automotive, and aerospace sectors, operating from a network of 35 branches.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1987
- HeadquartersHamburg, Germany
- Headcount1,001–5,000
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Expertum does
Expertum (legal entity: expertum Holding GmbH) is a Hamburg-headquartered HR services group founded in 1987 and operating under the motto "Aus der Industrie – für die Industrie." Its core business is the placement of technical and commercial personnel into German and Austrian industrial companies across four primary verticals: Maschinen- und Anlagenbau (machinery and plant engineering), Chemie und Pharma (chemicals and pharmaceuticals), Fahrzeugbau (automotive and rail), and Luft- und Raumfahrt (aviation/aerospace). The company is wholly owned by Belgian family-run staffing group Asap HR Group (Genk, Belgium), operates 30 branches across Germany plus 5 in Austria (with 2 additional sites in Belgium via sister company expertum BV), and employs 1,001-5,000 people, including named branch managers and a holding-level management team led by Chairman Jörg Stehr and Group CFO Frederik Gempfer.
The service portfolio spans three employment models — temporary staffing (Arbeitnehmerüberlassung/Zeitarbeit, the core), direct permanent placement (Personalvermittlung), and freelancer/contractor placement via the subsidiary expertum contracting GmbH — augmented by Managed Staffing Solutions (MSS), Recruitment Process Outsourcing (RPO), Neutral-Vendor and Master-Vendor programmes, and HR consulting. The underlying technology stack combines Zvoove (formerly Landwehr) workforce-management software delivered through the expertum JobApp mobile application, Zoho CRM for sales/account management, Appcast (Stepstone Group) for programmatic job advertising, and a public-facing job board with WhatsApp-enabled applications. IZS accreditation provides third-party verification of social-security and contribution compliance, reducing client subsidiary-liability (Subsidiärhaftung) risk.
Revenue is generated primarily through hourly/daily mark-ups on tariff-based wages plus industry branch allowances (Branchenzuschläge) for temporary staffing; success-based placement fees (percentage of annual salary) for direct hiring; retainer or project fees for MSS/RPO engagements; and mark-ups on freelance/contractor day rates. Distribution is direct, via the branch network and dedicated account managers for enterprise clients, and via the job board for candidate acquisition. Named enterprise customers include Airbus, Liebherr, R. STAHL, Siemens, Xiaomi, Mecalac, and Hirschvogel; two dedicated client branches (Liebherr Deutschland, R. STAHL in Waldenburg) signal deep enterprise lock-in. The company has expanded into Austria (Vienna HQ and four further locations from 2024-2025) under a parent-supported €10M capital raise, with Asap HR Group publicly targeting presence in 10 EU countries.
Expertum firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Expertum
- Legal name
- expertum Holding GmbH
- Website
- https://expertum.de
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1987
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1,001–5,000 employees
- Short description
- Expertum is a Hamburg-based, family-owned HR services group founded in 1987 that provides temporary staffing, direct placement, and managed staffing solutions (including RPO and freelancer placement) to industrial companies in Germany and Austria across machinery, chemicals/pharma, automotive, and aerospace sectors, operating from a network of 35 branches.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Expertum industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Industrial Staffing Services
- NAICS
- Management Consulting Services (54161), Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416)
- SIC
- Services-Employment Agencies (7361)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Professional & Technical Direct Hire (IT, Engineering, Finance, Healthcare) (BPACAFAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Agent of Record (AOR) / Contractor Engagement Services (BPACAGAB), Onboarding, Offboarding & Employee Lifecycle Administration (BPACAHAL)
Keywords
Where Expertum is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Hamburg
- HQ country
- Germany
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices36 records
Markets served
Expertum business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Workforce Leasing / Zeitarbeit (Temporary Staffing): Expertum hires workers on permanent contracts and assigns them to client companies (borrowing employers/Entleiher) for flexible periods. Revenue is earned as the margin between the worker wage paid by expertum and the hourly/daily rate charged to the client. This is the core business line, generating the majority of revenue.
- Direct Placement / Personalvermittlung: Expertum recruits and places candidates directly into permanent positions at client companies for a one-time placement fee, typically a percentage of the placed candidate's annual salary. The Q4/2023 report noted direct placement grew 35% in 2023, indicating it as a fast-growing revenue stream.
- Managed Staffing Solutions (MSS): Comprehensive outsourcing of the recruitment process and management of personnel resources for enterprise clients, including RPO, Neutral-Vendor, and Master-Vendor arrangements. Often bundled with freelance/expert contracting services.
- Expert Contracting / Freelancer Vermittlung: Expertum contracting GmbH matches freelance professionals (e.g., Life-Science, engineering, Maschinenbau specialists) with client project assignments, earning placement or commission fees.
- HR Consulting & Advisory: Advisory services for industrial clients on workforce strategy, employer attractiveness, and HR process optimisation, sold as part of the broader solutions portfolio.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Usage-based | Pay-as-you-go | Workforce Leasing (Zeitarbeit) — tariff-based with branch supplements |
| Outcome Based/ Performance | Multi-year contract | Direct Placement (Personalvermittlung) — success fee |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Managed Staffing Solutions (MSS/RPO) — retainer or project fee |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Contractor/Freelancer Vermittlung — project or commission |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels10 records
Expertum product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Expertum provides industrial staffing, recruiting, and HR consulting services for German and Austrian industrial companies. The company hires workers on permanent contracts and assigns them to client firms (Arbeitnehmerüberlassung/Zeitarbeit), recruits and places candidates directly into permanent roles at client companies (Personalvermittlung), and matches freelance specialists (Freelancer/Contracting) with project assignments through its subsidiary expertum contracting GmbH.
Product overview
Expertum is a Germany- and Austria-based HR services company offering a portfolio of three core employment models — Arbeitnehmerüberlassung (temporary staffing), Personalvermittlung (direct placement), and freelancing/contracting through expertum contracting GmbH — alongside specialist placement services. Its services are organized around four industry verticals (Maschinen- und Anlagenbau, Chemie und Pharma, Fahrzeugbau, and Luft- und Raumfahrt), supplemented by managed service offerings (Managed Staffing Solutions, HR-Outsourcing, and RPO) and a proprietary JobApp mobile application built on Zvoove software for internal employee management. The company operates 35 branch locations across Germany, Austria, and Belgium.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- expertum contracting: Specialized service for freelancers and self-employed professionals (Contractor/Freelancer services)
- expertum Management
- expertum Solutions
Products and services
- Arbeitnehmerüberlassung (Zeitarbeit)
Quantifiable outcome
- 60-day average placement time vs. 110-day industry standard — nearly twice as fast
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use Expertum
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments7 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Expertum technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Expertum partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- IZS – Institut für Zahlungssicherheit in der ZeitarbeitcoreExpertum holds an accredited partnership with IZS — the Institute for Payment Security in Temporary Staffing — which provides independent verification that all standard ancillary payments (social security contributions, employers' liability insurance association contributions) are settled correctly. This partnership gives expertum's clients a verifiable proof of compliance and reduces the risk of subsidiary liability (Subsidiärhaftung) for clients.
- Zvoove (formerly Landwehr Software GmbH)coreExpertum uses Zvoove as its workforce management software platform, accessed via the expertum JobApp powered by Zvoove. The application handles employee time tracking (hours, vacation requests, sick leave), payroll document delivery, and encrypted branch communication. Zvoove is the system of record for core HR processes across expertum's German operations.
- Lions Club Deutschland (Lions Quest Programme)minorExpertum is a lifelong partner of the Lions Quest programme of the Lions Stiftung Deutschland, a social initiative focused on youth development and education. This partnership is part of expertum's social responsibility and stakeholder engagement activities under its ESG commitments.
Scale indicators15 records
Recent moves13 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Expertum competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Hays plc: Global professional staffing group with a strong German business specialising in engineering, technical, and life-sciences contract and permanent placement. Direct competitor in Expertum's core contractor and engineering verticals.
- DIS AG: Germany's largest purely domestic industrial staffing specialist, focused on engineering and technical temporary staffing and direct placement. Highly comparable in vertical specialisation, customer base (industrial Mittelstand and large OEMs), and Zeitarbeit-led model.
- Robert Half Deutschland: German operations of Robert Half, focused on professional staffing in finance, accounting, IT and engineering. Comparable in permanent placement and contract recruitment of qualified professionals, particularly for engineering roles.
- TimePartner Personalmanagement: German HR services provider offering temporary staffing, permanent placement, and on-site management across industrial, logistics, and commercial sectors. Closely comparable mid-market competitor in the Zeitarbeit segment.
- PageGroup Deutschland: German arm of PageGroup, focused on professional permanent placement and contract recruitment in engineering, technical, and commercial roles. Direct competitor particularly in Expertum's Personalvermittlung and contractor lines.
Regional players
- Grafton Deutschland: German subsidiary of Ireland-based Grafton Group, providing temporary and permanent staffing with focus on technical, commercial and industrial roles. Comparable model and verticals, serving the same DACH market.
- ARWA Personaldienstleistungen: Mid-sized German staffing firm providing temporary staffing, permanent placement and on-site management for industrial and commercial clients across multiple German regions. Comparable operating model and customer base.
Broad incumbents
- Randstad Deutschland: German arm of global staffing leader Randstad, offering temporary staffing, permanent placement, and RPO across all sectors including industrial. Overlaps directly in industrial verticals but at much larger scale and broader sector coverage.
- ManpowerGroup Deutschland: German operations of ManpowerGroup, providing temporary staffing, permanent placement, RPO and talent development across industrial and professional segments. Comparable in service mix but materially larger and more diversified.
- Adecco Germany: Subsidiary of Adecco Group operating across temporary staffing, permanent placement, and outsourcing in Germany. Significant overlap in industrial and engineering segments, with broader portfolio and global delivery capability.
Market position
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Expertum social profiles
Digital presenceExpertum financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Expertum leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles12 records
Expertum subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries5 records
Expertum funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Expertum 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 Expertum
What does Expertum do?
Expertum provides industrial staffing, recruiting, and HR consulting services for German and Austrian industrial companies. The company hires workers on permanent contracts and assigns them to client firms (Arbeitnehmerüberlassung/Zeitarbeit), recruits and places candidates directly into permanent roles at client companies (Personalvermittlung), and matches freelance specialists (Freelancer/Contracting) with project assignments through its subsidiary expertum contracting GmbH.
Is Expertum a public or private company?
Expertum is a private company. It is classified as family owned and is currently operating.
When was Expertum founded?
Expertum was founded in 1987. It employs 1,001 to 5,000 people.
Where is Expertum based?
Expertum is headquartered in Hamburg, Germany, in the Europe region.
How does Expertum make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Workforce Leasing / Zeitarbeit (Temporary Staffing) is the primary driver. The others are direct Placement / Personalvermittlung, managed Staffing Solutions (MSS), expert Contracting / Freelancer Vermittlung and HR Consulting & Advisory.
Who are Expertum's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Hays plc, DIS AG, Robert Half Deutschland, TimePartner Personalmanagement and PageGroup Deutschland. Regional players are Grafton Deutschland and ARWA Personaldienstleistungen. Broad incumbents are Randstad Deutschland, ManpowerGroup Deutschland and Adecco Germany.
Does Expertum have an API?
No public API is recorded for Expertum.
What industry is Expertum in?
Expertum's product category is Industrial Staffing Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPACAFAC, Professional & Technical Direct Hire (IT, Engineering, Finance, Healthcare), with a secondary code of BPACAGAB, Agent of Record (AOR) / Contractor Engagement Services. Its NAICS code is 54161 and its SIC code is 7361.