What Circle8 Group does

Circle8 Group is a European IT and technology talent matching company headquartered in Cham, Switzerland, founded in 2021 when Swiss investment firm Axiom Partners acquired DSG (including KwiiK and People for Office). The company operates a multi-brand portfolio of five staffing brands (Circle8, Seven Stars, FixedToday, Königstein, Swisslinx) across Switzerland, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany, placing more than 16,000 IT professionals with over 500 clients and reporting €1.10 billion in 2025 turnover, a 20.3% year-over-year increase. Services are delivered under the company's "Total Talent Flow" framework and include intermediary services, recruitment process outsourcing (RPO), managed service provision (MSP), executive search, secondment, labour leasing, payrolling, and consulting.

Circle8's revenue is generated by placing IT and technology contractors and permanent hires with enterprise and government clients, primarily under managed services and contract staffing models. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. Major disclosed contract wins include a four-year $52 million framework with the Dutch Vehicle Authority (RDW) and a four-year $380 million contract with the Dutch Ministry of Education (DUO Groningen), the latter awarded through a competitive procurement involving 16 participants. Circle8 also serves as the Global Talent Matching Partner of the Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team, a strategic alliance announced in June 2024. The company is led by CEO Ineke Kooistra (appointed 2023), with founder Guus Franke serving as owner and now Executive Chairman of Atlantic International following the January 23, 2026 all-stock acquisition.

The company's "HR Tech" positioning is principally a service business: there is no disclosed proprietary technology platform, AI/ML capability, or productized software offering; talent matching is delivered through local sales teams, acquired brand portfolios, and competitive procurement processes. In January 2026, Circle8 was acquired by Atlantic International Corp (NASDAQ: ATLN) in an all-stock transaction, creating a workforce solutions platform with approximately $1.2 billion in combined unaudited annual revenue spanning European IT staffing and North American light industrial staffing.

Name

Circle8 Group

Legal name

Circle8Group

Website

https://circle8group.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Circle8 Group is a European IT and technology talent matching firm headquartered in Switzerland, operating five staffing brands across Switzerland, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany, placing over 16,000 professionals with 500+ clients under its Total Talent Flow framework.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

IT Staffing Services

NAICS

Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (541), Management, Scientific, and Technical Consulting Services (5416)

SIC

Services-Employment Agencies (7361), Services-Management Services (8741)

akta.pro primary industry

Healthcare IT & Health Informatics Staffing (BPACADAK)

Keywords

• IT staffing services
• Talent matching
• Recruitment process outsourcing
• Managed service provision
• Executive search

Headquarters

HQ city

Cham

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. IT Talent Matching and Staffing Services: Circle8 generates revenue through providing IT talent matching services including intermediary services, recruitment process outsourcing (RPO), managed service provision (MSP), staffing, contracting, search and selection, payrolling, secondment, and labour leasing. The company places IT professionals with clients across Europe and earns fees for these placement and ongoing talent management services.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Circle8 Group operates as an IT talent matching and staffing company providing intermediary services, recruitment process outsourcing (RPO), managed service provision (MSP), executive search, secondment, labor leasing, temp-to-perm, payrolling, consulting, and talent development across Europe. The company places IT professionals with enterprise and government clients through its portfolio of brands including Circle8, Seven Stars, FixedToday, Königstein, and Swisslinx.

Product overview

Circle8 Group operates as a platform of HR Tech service brands offering comprehensive talent management services across the IT, technology, and finance industries in Europe. The portfolio consists of the core Circle8 brand plus sub-brands Seven Stars, FixedToday, Königstein, and Swisslinx, each with its unique culture while sharing the Total Talent Flow philosophy. Services span intermediary services, recruitment process outsourcing (RPO), managed service provision (MSP), executive search, secondment, labor leasing, temp-to-perm, payrolling, consulting, and talent development. The company also partners with the Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team as Global Talent Matching Partner.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Seven Stars: Specialist in intermediary services, RPO, MSP, Secondment & Labour leasing, Temp-to-perm, Talent development
• FixedToday
• Königstein
• Swisslinx
• Circle8 Consulting
• Circle8Group

Products and services

• Circle8 Primary brand and platform of Circle8 Group, providing IT and technology talent matching services across Europe, including intermediary services, RPO, MSP, secondment, and consulting.
• Seven Stars Dutch brand specializing in the mediation of temporary IT professionals since 2005, providing intermediary services and talent development, with offices in Zwolle, Utrecht, and Groningen.
• FixedToday
• Swisslinx
• Königstein
• Circle8 Consulting Professional consulting services for complex business challenges and transformation, supporting clients throughout the complete project lifecycle from strategy development to implementation.

Quantifiable outcome

• €1.10 billion turnover in 2025, representing 20.3% growth
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Aston Martin Aramco Formula One TeamflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 June 2024Circle8 Group serves as the Global Talent Matching Partner of the Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team. The partnership involves Circle8 providing IT and technical talent recruitment services to support the F1 team's operations. Circle8's logo appears on the AMR24 race car. The partnership was announced on June 20, 2024 at the AMR Technology Campus in Silverstone.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• ManpowerGroup: Global staffing and workforce solutions company with IT, engineering, and professional staffing lines across Europe. Competes with Circle8 for enterprise and government IT contract staffing at scale, but as a broad generalist rather than a specialist.
• Randstad N.V. Global staffing leader headquartered in the Netherlands with significant European IT staffing capability (Randstad Technologies, Yacht). Direct competitor for enterprise and public-sector IT contracts, but operates as a broad generalist across many verticals rather than a specialist.
• Adecco Group: Global staffing leader with major IT and professional staffing lines (Akkodis/Adecco) across Europe. Competes with Circle8 in IT contract staffing and RPO/MSP, though Adecco is a broad incumbent. Notably, Circle8's Seven Stars MD Pascal Meerwijk spent 20+ years at Adecco, indicating a tight talent-flow relationship.
• PageGroup (Michael Page & Page Personnel): London-listed professional services recruitment group with strong IT, finance, and technology practices across continental Europe. Competes with Circle8 in mid-to-senior IT and finance permanent and contract placement, but operates as a broad professional recruiter.

Direct peers

• Brunel International: Amsterdam-headquartered global specialist staffing and project services firm focused on engineering, IT, and technical professionals. Direct peer in European IT/technical contract staffing with similar Dutch/DACH operating footprint and public-sector exposure.
• Hays plc: London-listed specialist staffing firm with a major IT and technology placement franchise across the UK, Germany, and continental Europe. Direct competitor to Circle8 in European IT/tech contract and permanent placement, with comparable client mix including government and large enterprise.
• SThree plc: London-listed specialist STEM and IT staffing operator with deep European (especially DACH and Benelux) presence via brands such as Computer Futures and Progressive. Closely comparable to Circle8 in target verticals, contract/permanent mix, and geographic focus.
• Robert Half International: US-listed specialist staffing firm with a major IT/tech and finance placement franchise in North America and Europe. Comparable in specialist talent-matching model, contract/permanent mix, and focus on IT and finance verticals.

Emerging players

• Andela: Global technology-talent marketplace connecting companies with vetted software engineers, with growing presence in Africa, Latin America, and Europe. Represents the digital-native, platform-based model of IT talent matching that could disintermediate traditional agencies like Circle8.
• Toptal: Global, platform-based marketplace for elite freelance software, design, and finance talent. Emerging competitor to Circle8 in senior IT talent matching, distinguished by a technology-led matching model rather than traditional agency intermediation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/circle8group

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries5 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 Circle8 Group