Foundation Recruitment
Foundation Recruitment is a UK-based, founder-led recruitment consultancy serving investors, developers, financiers, operators, and advisers in the real estate and placemaking sectors across Europe via contingency, retained, and executive search mandates.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2009
- HeadquartersManchester, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Foundation Recruitment does
Foundation Recruitment UK Ltd is a privately held recruitment consultancy founded in 2009 and headquartered in Manchester, with a secondary office in London. The firm operates across the UK and Europe (including Germany, France, and Spain) on behalf of investors, developers, financiers, operators, and advisers in the real estate and placemaking sectors, with an additional focus on built-environment professionals in asset management, facilities management, and shopping centre management.
The consultancy delivers three core services: Contingency Recruitment (access to active candidates, transaction-fee pricing on placement), Retained Selection (exclusive partnership-based hiring for key roles, professional services pricing), and Executive Search (comprehensive search for complex, geographically challenging, or sensitive senior hires). Its underlying technology stack consists of the Vincere CRM platform for candidate and client data, the Cloud Call telephony system integrated into the CRM for outbound calling, Cloud10 for IT infrastructure, and Google Analytics for website analytics — standard SaaS tooling rather than proprietary technology.
Foundation Recruitment generates revenue primarily through placement fees across contingency and retained/executive mandates. The go-to-market is sales-led and consultant-driven, with direct engagement of enterprise clients alongside a self-serve candidate registration portal. Distribution combines a content-led website and blog, LinkedIn presence, email outreach, job board listings, and participation in industry events such as the ACI Airport Commercial and Retail Conference. The firm is founder-led (Julian Long and Louise Harman) with no disclosed external investment, parent company, or M&A activity.
Foundation Recruitment firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Foundation Recruitment
- Legal name
- Foundation Recruitment UK Ltd
- Website
- https://foundationrecruitment.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2009
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Foundation Recruitment is a UK-based, founder-led recruitment consultancy serving investors, developers, financiers, operators, and advisers in the real estate and placemaking sectors across Europe via contingency, retained, and executive search mandates.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Foundation Recruitment industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Recruitment Services
- NAICS
- Employment Placement Agencies and Executive Search Services (56131)
- SIC
- Services-Employment Agencies (7361)
- akta.pro primary industry
- General Permanent Placement (Multi-Industry) (BPACAFAA)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Human Capital & Workforce Transformation Consulting (BPAHACAE)
Keywords
Where Foundation Recruitment is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Manchester
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
Foundation Recruitment business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Contingency Recruitment: Access to active candidates registered with Foundation Recruitment looking for their next move. Clients pay upon successful placement.
- Retained Selection: Exclusive partnership approach where Foundation works exclusively with clients on key, particular hires. Engaged for comprehensive search assignments.
- Executive Search: Most comprehensive service addressing complexity of role, geographic challenge or sensitivity around hiring.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Foundation Recruitment product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Foundation Recruitment is a specialist recruitment consultancy that delivers Contingency Recruitment, Retained Selection, and Executive Search services to clients in the real estate and placemaking sectors across the UK and Europe. Its consultants place professionals into investor, developer, financier, operator, and adviser roles using a partnership-led model supported by a Vincere CRM and Cloud Call telephony platform.
Product overview
Foundation Recruitment is a recruitment consultancy offering a suite of professional recruitment services for the real estate and placemaking sectors. The company provides three core service offerings: Contingency Recruitment (access to active candidates), Retained Selection (exclusive partnership-based hiring for key roles), and Executive Search (comprehensive search for complex or sensitive senior hires). These services are delivered across Europe on behalf of investors, developers, financiers, operators, and advisers. The firm operates as a service-based consultancy rather than a software product company.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Contingency Recruitment A recruitment service providing real estate and placemaking clients with access to active candidates registered with the firm who are looking for their next career move; clients pay only upon successful placement.
- Retained Selection A partnership-focused, exclusive recruitment engagement in which Foundation Recruitment works with a single client on a key, particular hire, providing depth and reach for senior or critical real estate and placemaking roles.
- Executive Search Foundation Recruitment's most comprehensive service, addressing role complexity, geographic challenges, or sensitivity around hiring for senior leadership positions across real estate and placemaking sectors.
Quantifiable outcome
- Third consecutive Investors in People Gold accreditation (2018)
Companies that use Foundation Recruitment
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Foundation Recruitment technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Foundation Recruitment partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered supporting and core.
- Cloud10supportingIT Provider hosting IT environment, providing anti-virus software, hardware, support services, data backups and IT solutions. Monitors system daily to ensure data security.
- VincerecoreCRM Database provider where main bulk of candidate and client data is stored for recruitment purposes. Protected by strict procedures and security features to prevent unauthorised access.
- Cloud CallsupportingIntelligent phone system that integrates phone calls directly into CRM (Vincere). Operates purely to enable calling from CRM system for recruitment purposes.
- BruntwoodsupportingUK office provider responsible for management and services provided for office space. Foundation operates minimal hard copy information and clean desk policy.
- ENEI (Employers Network for Equality & Inclusion)supportingActive members to inform and support with the evolving nature of diversity and inclusion in employment practices.
- The Mustard TreesupportingManchester-based homeless charity. Foundation Recruitment supports CSR initiatives including running half marathons to raise funds for the charity which supports people across Greater Manchester in poverty and facing homelessness.
- GooglesupportingUsed for analytics to collect information about how visitors use the website. Cookies (_utma, _utmb, _utmc, _utmz) collect anonymous information for statistical analysis.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Foundation Recruitment competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Cobalt Recruitment: Specialist recruiter covering real estate, construction, property, and related built-environment verticals. Competes directly with Foundation on real estate and placemaking mandates in the UK and internationally.
- Propel: Specialist recruiter for the property and real estate technology sectors. Competes for mandates in real estate digital, proptech, and place management — adjacent to Foundation's placemaking practice.
- Deverell Smith: UK real estate recruitment specialist covering asset management, investment, development, and property management roles. Closely comparable vertical focus and client base to Foundation Recruitment.
- Macdonald & Company: UK-based recruitment firm specializing in real estate and built environment roles across the UK, Europe, and Asia Pacific. Direct competitor in the same vertical with overlapping service lines including permanent, interim, and executive search.
- Madison Berkeley: Real estate and technology recruitment specialist operating in the UK and internationally. Directly comparable on real estate vertical specialization and executive search capabilities.
- Vickerstock: Recruitment consultancy covering property, construction, and engineering sectors across the UK and Ireland. Overlaps with Foundation's real estate focus with similar mid-market and senior placement services.
Emerging players
- Acre Resources: Recruitment firm focused on sustainability and ESG roles within the built environment. Emerging player with strong thematic overlap to Foundation's ESG and sustainability-focused real estate work.
Broad incumbents
- Robert Half: Global staffing and recruitment firm with real estate and property finance coverage. Competes with Foundation for senior finance, asset management, and corporate real estate roles.
- Michael Page: Global recruitment firm with established property and real estate practices. Larger incumbent with deeper candidate databases and brand recognition, competing for mid-to-senior real estate placements.
- Hays: Global recruitment leader with a dedicated UK property and real estate division. Larger generalist competitor with broader sector coverage that pressures Foundation on fee competitiveness and time-to-fill at scale.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Foundation Recruitment social profiles
Digital presenceFoundation Recruitment financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Foundation Recruitment leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Foundation Recruitment funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Foundation 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 Foundation Recruitment
What does Foundation Recruitment do?
Foundation Recruitment is a specialist recruitment consultancy that delivers Contingency Recruitment, Retained Selection, and Executive Search services to clients in the real estate and placemaking sectors across the UK and Europe. Its consultants place professionals into investor, developer, financier, operator, and adviser roles using a partnership-led model supported by a Vincere CRM and Cloud Call telephony platform.
Is Foundation Recruitment a public or private company?
Foundation Recruitment is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Foundation Recruitment founded?
Foundation Recruitment was founded in 2009. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Foundation Recruitment based?
Foundation Recruitment is headquartered in Manchester, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Foundation Recruitment make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Contingency Recruitment is the primary driver. The others are retained Selection and executive Search.
Who are Foundation Recruitment's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Cobalt Recruitment, Propel, Deverell Smith, Macdonald & Company, Madison Berkeley and Vickerstock. Acre Resources is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are Robert Half, Michael Page and Hays.
Does Foundation Recruitment have an API?
No public API is recorded for Foundation Recruitment.
What industry is Foundation Recruitment in?
Foundation Recruitment's product category is Recruitment Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPACAFAA, General Permanent Placement (Multi-Industry), with a secondary code of BPAHACAE, Human Capital & Workforce Transformation Consulting. Its NAICS code is 56131 and its SIC code is 7361.