Planned Resources

What Planned Resources does

Planned Resources is a privately held boutique recruitment agency founded in 2010 by Russell Locke and headquartered at 2/161 Collins Street, Melbourne. The firm specialises in placing built-environment professionals across six sectors: planning (statutory, strategic, urban design), design (architecture, interiors, landscape, urban design), engineering (civil, structural, building services, environmental, transport), government (local councils and state departments), surveying, and property + business services. Services are delivered through two engagement types — permanent placement (quote-based fees, typically a percentage of placed salary, with multi-year contract cadence) and temporary/contract staffing (usage-based hourly/daily billing, delivered under the firm's Labour Hire Authority accreditation in Victoria). The underlying technology is a recruitment database and CRM used for candidate management and placement tracking; there is no proprietary software platform, AI/ML layer, or developer-facing API.

The go-to-market is consultative and relationship-driven: a team of approximately ten sector-specialist consultants (each Associate Director owns a sector desk) engages directly with hiring managers across local councils, state government, private consultancies, property developers and land development firms. Channel access is reinforced by pre-qualified status on Local Buy, the Procurement Australia panel, Registered Supplier status for whole-of-NSW-government, and ISO9001 quality certification. The firm also runs organic content marketing on its corporate site and LinkedIn, and participates in Planning Institute of Australia and university outreach programs to seed future candidate supply.

The customer mix spans Australian public sector (Melbourne and Victorian councils, state departments, NSW whole-of-government) and private sector (architecture, engineering, surveying and design consultancies; property and land developers). Pricing is not publicly disclosed. The company operates across Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Tasmania, the Gold Coast and regional Australia, but maintains a single Melbourne headquarters and has no offices in other states. Planned Resources is self-funded, with no external institutional investment, no parent company, no subsidiaries, and no M&A history. Active job postings and content updates dated June 2026 confirm ongoing operations.

Name

Planned Resources

Legal name

Planned Resources

Website

https://plannedresources.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Planned Resources is a Melbourne-based boutique recruitment agency founded in 2010 that places built-environment professionals across planning, design, engineering, government, surveying, and property sectors throughout Australia. It serves local councils, state government, private consultancies and developers via permanent and contract staffing.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Recruitment Services

NAICS

Employment Placement Agencies (561311), Temporary Help Services (561320)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361)

akta.pro primary industry

General Permanent Placement (Multi-Industry) (BPACAFAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Government & Public Sector Direct Hire (BPACAFAK), Workforce Strategy & Strategic Workforce Planning (BPACAJAC)

Keywords

• Recruitment services
• Town planning recruitment
• Built environment staffing
• Engineering recruitment
• Government sector hiring

Headquarters

HQ city

Melbourne

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Permanent Recruitment: Placement fees for permanent long-term roles with tailored methodology including market mapping, targeted executive approaches, campaign management, and contingent assignments. Benchmarks internal applicants, provides interview questions, and may sit on interview panels.
2. Temporary/Contract Staffing: Provides qualified vetted candidates for illness coverage, holidays, increased workload, or project-based work. Accredited supplier of agency staff with Labour Hire Authority, fully licensed to operate in Victoria.
3. Support Services: Additional value-added services including salary benchmarking, staff reviews, shortlisting, reference checking, and interview guidance provided alongside core recruitment services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Planned Resources is a boutique recruitment consultancy that connects employers with qualified candidates across the built environment sector in Australia. The firm delivers three core service lines: permanent placement recruitment, temporary/contract staffing (licensed under the Victorian Labour Hire Authority), and value-added support services such as salary benchmarking, reference checking, and interview guidance. Its sector specialisations span town planning, urban design, architecture, engineering, surveying, property, and government support roles.

Product overview

Planned Resources is a boutique recruitment agency (not a software product/platform) that specializes in connecting candidates with employers in the built environment sector. The company offers recruitment services as a single, unified offering rather than a platform-plus-modules architecture. Services include permanent placement, temporary/contract staffing, and support services such as salary benchmarking, workforce planning, and interview guidance. The company operates across six core sectors: Planning, Design, Engineering, Government, Surveying, and Property + Business Services, serving clients throughout Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, and regional Australia.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Permanent Recruitment Placement of permanent, long-term candidates for employers in the built environment sector. Uses tailored methodology including market mapping, targeted executive approaches, campaign management, and contingent assignments; benchmarks internal applicants, provides interview questions, and may sit on interview panels. Pricing is quote-based, typically a percentage of the placed candidate's annual salary.
• Temporary/Contract Staffing Provision of qualified, vetted candidates for illness coverage, holidays, increased workload, or project-based work. Delivered as a Labour Hire Authority accredited agency staffing service, fully licensed to operate in Victoria, with usage-based hourly or daily rates and quick-turnaround solutions.
• Support Services Additional value-added services provided alongside core recruitment placements, including salary benchmarking, staff reviews, shortlisting, reference checking, and interview guidance for both employers and candidates.

Quantifiable outcome

• Many clients and candidates return repeatedly, indicating successful long-term placements
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Local BuycoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPre-Qualified Supplier on Local Buy procurement platform, providing recruitment services to local government clients nationwide
• Procurement AustraliacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAuthorised supplier on Procurement Australia panel, enabling access to public sector recruitment opportunities
• NSW GovernmentcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRegistered Supplier for recruitment services to whole of NSW government, local governments, education and NFP sectors across New South Wales
• Planning Institute of Australia (PIA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerActive participation in PIA events and industry activities. Team members engage as guest speakers for university planning student associations including Melbourne University and RMIT
• University Planning Student AssociationsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTeam members including Leo Liemesak serve as guest speakers at Planning Student Associations of Melbourne University, RMIT, and other universities to mentor next generation of planners

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Aspect Personnel: Specialist architecture, urban design, and interior design recruitment agency in Australia. Directly comparable niche focus on built environment design talent, overlapping with Planned Resources' design and planning sectors.
• Bloomfield Tremayne & Partners: Long-established Australian architecture, design, and property recruitment firm. Comparable niche focus on design and property professionals, similar relationship-driven boutique model.
• Design & Build Recruitment: Specialist recruiter for architecture, construction, and engineering professionals in Australia. Comparable boutique specialist serving overlapping built environment clients.
• CGC Recruitment: Australian construction, property, and engineering recruitment specialist. Comparable to Planned Resources across engineering, surveying, and property verticals with a similar mid-sized boutique profile.
• ConsultANZ: Australian specialist recruitment firm for architecture, engineering, and construction professionals across ANZ. Most directly comparable to Planned Resources given overlapping built environment verticals and similar boutique positioning.

Broad incumbents

• Michael Page: Global recruitment firm with Australian operations covering engineering, property, and construction. Competes with Planned Resources for mid-to-senior built environment roles but as part of a broader multi-sector portfolio.
• Adecco: Global staffing leader with significant Australian presence across temporary and permanent recruitment. Competes via volume and breadth rather than built environment specialisation.
• Hays: Global generalist recruiter with a substantial built environment and construction practice in Australia. Competes with Planned Resources in engineering and government sectors but operates at vastly greater scale across all industries.

Regional players

• SPARGO Recruitment: Australian recruitment firm with built environment and government coverage. Comparable in sector focus though with a broader geographic and vertical footprint than Planned Resources.

Emerging players

• Constructability: Smaller Australian recruitment firm focused on construction and engineering professionals. Comparable emerging specialist in adjacent built environment verticals.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/PlannedResource
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/planned-resources

Compliance1 record

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 Planned Resources