Quintet, a Sydney based investment management firm today announced its acquisition of a significant shareholding in Talent. Founder Richard Earl will continue in his role as Executive Chairman and remain the largest shareholder in the Company. Quintet represents a number of family office investors including Thérèse Rein, who will also be involved in an advisory capacity to Talent.
Talent is a global technology recruitment and consulting services specialist with 16 offices worldwide and annual revenue exceeding $550 million. It is the leading provider of technology professionals in ANZ, and has leveraged this success to facilitate its expansion into the USA, UK and Europe.
Talent has been acknowledged by LinkedIn, CEO Magazine, HRD and Seek for industry leadership, innovation, culture and engagement. In 2018, Talent was ranked in the top 100 private companies in Australia.
Over the past 23 years Talent has expanded its business from a single office located in Perth into a global business serving 1,100 customers worldwide in Australia, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Asia, North America, Germany and Holland. Talent has delivered an impressive 20% per annum revenue growth for the past decade and continues to benefit from the rapidly growing $3 trillion global IT industry driven by the rise of the digital economy as well as an increasing appetite for a more flexible, contract style of working including project-based roles. Talent is proud to be the founder of the Talent Unleashed Awards, recognising innovation in the technology sector and Talent RISE, a not-for-profit organisation that assists young people with barriers to employment into roles within the technology and digital sector.
Richard Earl, Executive Chairman of Talent said: “I am delighted to be partnering with Quintet for the next chapter of Talent’s growth. The next few years which will see further international expansion and the scaling of our digital product Talent Engage. Quintet stood out because of its industry relationships and reach, as well as the quality of its team. I have no doubt that they will help us to fulfil our vision at this exciting stage in Talent’s development.”
Thérèse Rein, investor in Quintet and founder of the international employment services business Ingeus, said: “I’m excited to be involved with a business such as Talent that embraces innovation and constantly looks to break from the pack. Having founded Ingeus in the late 1980s, I can strongly identify with the path the business has taken. I look forward to using my experience and industry insights to help grow the business and support a range of initiatives including supporting women and indigenous people in tech roles. This is an exciting time to be involved in the tech world and there are lots of opportunities for Talent to grow as a commercial and community leader.”
Douglas Farrell, founder and Managing Partner at Quintet said: “We are excited about the quality of Talent’s business, which has for more than two decades delivered consistent growth by focusing exclusively on its area of special competence. We are delighted to have partnered with Richard Earl and his impressive management team to continue building on their achievements to date. We intend to further support the company’s growth, both in existing and new markets internationally while upholding its socially responsible values and culture.”
Mark Nielsen, Talent’s APAC CEO, said: “It is great to have Quintet as our financial partner. What is even more exciting is that through the partnership with Quintet, Talent will benefit from the global expertise and proven success of the Quintet team. This will assist Talent in achieving its mission of being the largest global independent pure-play technology recruitment group”.
Upon completion of the transaction, Douglas Farrell will join Talent’s board of directors. Talent was advised by Clayton Utz and Quintet was advised by Herbert Smith Freehills.