In the earlier days of the recruitment process outsourcing (RPO) and broader talent management services industry, partnerships between providers as a means to deliver enhanced service offerings and greater geographic coverage were common. Yet, in the past couple of years, many of these partners have taken the M&A path in response to increasing buy-side desire for consistency and standardization in their recruitment operations.
The Pinstripe/Ochre House merger – announced on July 18, 2013 – certainly plays to the market’s preference for a single provider model. Yet, in their case, the drivers extended beyond buyers’ preference for a single provider model, complimentary capabilities, and a time-tested partnership construct. In fact, Pinstripe could have faced serious client, potential new business, and time-to-market losses had it not taken the merger route.
So what does Everest Group see as the key implications of Pinstripe’s and Ochre House’s union? As excerpted from our just-released breaking viewpoint on the merger:
- It trumpets the departure of partnership-based RPO models, in favor of single, end-to-end providers
- It propels the combined firm solidly into the Leaders category on Everest Group’s RPO PEAK Matrix
- It provides both companies’ clients with geographic and service expansion opportunities
- It will drive greater attention within the RPO market from the investor community
- Despite the complimentary nature of the firms, (including TAAHEED and Carmichael Fisher, which Ochre House acquired in 2012), lack of clarity on the integration path is likely to delay the synergy realization
- The combined entity will still need to figure out how to fill emerging market gaps
For more details on the merger and its impact on the market – both buy-side and sell-side – please see Everest Group’s breaking viewpoint, Pinstripe Merges with Ochre House: Demise of Partnership-Based RPO Model.
