In October 2019, we celebrated 20 years of providing Recruitment Technology Solutions to the corporate market. Established in Salford in 1999, we first featured a role for Kellogg’s in October that year.
In a global market now worth over $1.2 billion, we have become established as one of the UK’s premier providers of Talent Acquisition platforms. From the early days of working out of a shared office in Salford, we now provide recruitment technology to organisations as diverse at NHS Scotland, The University of Manchester, Chester Zoo, Odeon Cinemas and many more.
Spotting the potential
Our business, established by current Managing Director, Chris Keeling, came about following Chris’ own experience of working in HR and managing large recruitment campaigns for the likes of Jaguar Land Rover. When the internet first emerged, Chris was quick to spot the potential. Working closely with Alison Keeling (co-founder) they initially worked with client companies who they had built a relationship with whilst working in HR consultancy. This led to them developing what was possibly the UK’s first Applicant Tracking System – used by companies such as Kellogg’s, Avon Cosmetics and Ericsson.
The business now has a turnover over £2.5m per annum and enjoys sustained growth. Founder and MD, Chris Keeling, commented:
It’s been quite an incredible journey. When we first came up with the idea, the internet and related technology was so much in its infancy. Google was only a few months old and no-one really used Microsoft! The early days were an education for everyone. We once drove all the way to a large client in the South of Wales only to discover ‘that HR weren’t allowed to use the internet!’
Winning NHS Scotland last year was a very proud moment, but there have been plenty of great clients that we have enjoyed working with over the years – and the fact that some of those from our early days are still with us, is just fantastic. Just as pleasing though is the team we have built here – some of whom have been with us right from the start and many have enjoyed the majority of their working lives with Jobtrain. They’re all not just really good at their jobs, but they are delightful people who are simply great to work alongside