RGF Staffing

RGF Staffing B.V. is a Dutch recruitment and human resources company headquartered in Almere. The business is the successor to USG People N.V., a major European staffing group whose roots lie in the 1997 combination of Unique International B.V. and Goudsmit N.V. It became part of Japan-based Recruit Holdings after Recruit acquired all outstanding shares of USG People in 2016 for approximately €1.42 billion. The company operates primarily in Central and Western Europe through temporary employment agencies, specialist recruitment businesses and professional staffing operations. Its activities include temporary employment, secondment, permanent recruitment, workforce administration and customer-service-related services. The Netherlands has historically been its largest market, with other important operations in Belgium and Luxembourg, France, Germany and Spain. The group has also maintained a presence in countries including Italy and other European markets, with the precise geographic footprint varying across periods and operating brands. RGF Staffing's largest operating activity is general temporary employment, historically organized in many markets under the Start People brand. The group also owns or operates specialist businesses serving administrative, financial, secretarial, healthcare, engineering, telecommunications and information-technology professions. This combination gives it exposure to both high-volume flexible employment and higher-skilled professional recruitment and secondment. The corporate history reflects repeated consolidation in the European staffing sector. Following the 1997 merger, the enlarged company adopted the name United Services Group N.V. in 2001. It expanded through the acquisition of Start Holding, a Dutch employment agency that had been privatized in the 1990s, increasing its reach in Spain and Italy. In 2005, United Services Group acquired Belgian staffing company Solvus Resource Group for about €585 million and subsequently adopted the USG People name. USG People was once a publicly traded company and a constituent of the Amsterdam mid-cap AMX index. In 2008, the group introduced a preference-share structure through a foundation as a defensive measure against potential unwanted acquisition attempts. That structure became part of the company's broader governance and takeover-defense framework during a period of consolidation in the staffing industry. Recruit Holdings completed the acquisition of USG People in 2016, taking the company out of public ownership and incorporating it into its international human-resources portfolio. The business is now presented as RGF Staffing, while established operating brands remain important to its market presence. Its positioning combines local recruitment expertise, broad branch coverage and specialist workforce solutions, serving employers that need temporary labor, permanent hires, project-based expertise or flexible access to professional talent.

RGF Staffing traces its corporate lineage to the 1997 merger of Unique International B.V., a Benelux staffing company, and Goudsmit N.V., a publicly traded holding company with recruitment interests. The merger created a larger platform for expansion in the European employment-services market. In 2001, the combined group changed its name to United Services Group N.V. Two years later, it strengthened its position in the Dutch and broader European staffing markets by acquiring a controlling interest in Start Holding. Start had been privatized by the Dutch government six years earlier. United Services Group later increased its holding to full control. The transaction expanded the group's presence in markets including Spain and Italy and gave it a major generalist staffing network. The group continued its consolidation strategy in 2005 by acquiring Belgian staffing company Solvus Resource Group for approximately €585 million. After the transaction, United Services Group adopted the name USG People N.V., aligning the corporate identity more closely with its international staffing activities. The enlarged organization combined general temporary employment with specialist recruitment and professional workforce services. USG People operated through a broad European branch network. Its Dutch business was historically the largest contributor, while Belgium and Luxembourg, France, Germany and Spain were also significant regional markets. The group reported a network of roughly 1,350 branches across ten European countries in the period described by the reference material, while other descriptions characterize its broader presence as extending to thirteen countries in Central and Western Europe. Its brands served both employers seeking temporary workers and organizations recruiting permanent or specialist personnel. General temporary work represented the group's largest business segment. Start People became the principal unified generalist staffing brand across several markets. Alongside it, USG People maintained specialist operations focused on administrative, financial, secretarial and healthcare positions. Its professional division recruited and supplied skilled personnel in engineering, telecommunications and information technology, and the group also offered customer-service and other related human-resources solutions. As a public company, USG People was listed on Euronext Amsterdam and was included in the AMX mid-cap index. In late 2008, during a period of active consolidation in the staffing sector, the company adopted a takeover-defense mechanism involving the issuance of preference shares to a foundation. The arrangement was intended to give the company additional protection against potential unwanted bidders. Recruit Holdings, a Japan-based human-resources and media group, agreed to acquire USG People and completed the purchase of all shares in 2016. The reported value of the transaction was approximately €1.42 billion. The acquisition ended USG People's independent public-company status and placed its European staffing operations within Recruit's global workforce-services portfolio. The business subsequently became associated with the RGF Staffing name. Its operating model continued to combine temporary employment agencies, professional recruitment, secondment and specialist workforce services. The company's historical development therefore reflects the broader evolution of European staffing: local agencies were consolidated into national and regional groups, generalist temporary work was combined with professional recruitment, and established European operators became components of larger international human-resources companies.

• 2016

  Recruit Holdings completes acquisition

  [1]RGF Staffingen.wikipedia.org

  Recruit Holdings acquires all shares of USG People for approximately €1.42 billion, taking the business out of public ownership.

• 2008

  Takeover-defense structure established

  [1]RGF Staffingen.wikipedia.org

  USG People adopts a preference-share defense administered through a company foundation to address the possibility of an unwanted acquisition.

• 2005

  Solvus Resource Group acquired

  [1]RGF Staffingen.wikipedia.org

  The group acquires Belgian staffing company Solvus Resource Group for approximately €585 million and changes its corporate name to USG People N.V.

• 2002

  Start Holding becomes part of the group

  [1]RGF Staffingen.wikipedia.org

  United Services Group acquires control of Start Holding and later expands that holding to full ownership, strengthening its generalist staffing presence and reach in Spain and Italy.

• 2001

  United Services Group name adopted

  [1]RGF Staffingen.wikipedia.org

  The enlarged organization changes its corporate name to United Services Group N.V.

• 1997

  Unique International and Goudsmit merge

  [1]RGF Staffingen.wikipedia.org

  The Benelux staffing company Unique International and publicly traded Goudsmit combine, creating the corporate predecessor of RGF Staffing.

A European multi-brand workforce-services group combining high-volume temporary employment with specialist recruitment and professional secondment. Its market proposition is based on local branch networks, sector expertise and the ability to supply both flexible labor and skilled personnel.

• General temporary staffing

  Start People

  Start People is the group's principal generalist staffing brand in the reference material. It supplies temporary workers and related flexible-employment services through local agencies across European markets. The brand supports employers with short-term, seasonal and variable workforce needs while also serving job seekers looking for temporary assignments and pathways into longer-term employment.

• Professional staffing

  Professional recruitment and secondment

  RGF Staffing's professional activities cover recruitment and secondment for skilled roles, including engineering, telecommunications and information technology. These services are designed for employers requiring specialized capabilities for permanent positions, projects or interim assignments, and complement the group's high-volume temporary employment operations.

• Sector-specialist recruitment

  Specialist staffing services

  The group operates specialist recruitment activities serving administrative, finance, secretarial and healthcare professions. These businesses apply sector-specific candidate sourcing and placement expertise rather than relying solely on the broad labor pools used in general temporary staffing.

• Customer-service staffing

  Customer-service workforce solutions

  RGF Staffing also provides workforce services connected with customer-service operations. The offering forms part of the group's wider human-resources portfolio and addresses employers that need personnel for contact-center, customer-support or related service functions.

• 2016

  Sale of USG People to Recruit HoldingsM&A

  Background

  Recruit Holdings sought to expand its international human-resources operations through the acquisition of an established European staffing group.

  Action taken

  Recruit Holdings acquired all shares of USG People and integrated the business into its global portfolio.

  Aftermath

  USG People ceased to be an independently listed public company and became part of Recruit Holdings. The business later operated under the RGF Staffing identity.

  Acquisition value. Approximately €1.42 billion (2016)

  Source

• 2008

  Adoption of preference-share takeover defenseStrategy

  Background

  USG People faced the possibility of unwanted acquisition attempts during a period of consolidation among staffing companies.

  Action taken

  The company established a defense involving the issuance of preference shares to a company foundation.

  Aftermath

  The structure was intended to give the company additional time and negotiating leverage in the event of a hostile or otherwise unwanted bid.

  Source

• 2005

  Acquisition of Solvus Resource GroupM&A

  Background

  United Services Group pursued expansion in the European staffing market through the purchase of Belgian peer Solvus Resource Group.

  Action taken

  The company acquired Solvus Resource Group for approximately €585 million and subsequently adopted the USG People name.

  Aftermath

  The transaction expanded the group's Belgian and wider European staffing platform and marked the transition from the United Services Group identity to USG People.

  Acquisition value. Approximately €585 million (August 2005)

  Source

• 2016

  USG People acquired by Recruit Holdings[1]RGF Staffingen.wikipedia.org

  M&A

  Recruit Holdings acquired all shares of Dutch staffing group USG People, bringing the formerly listed company into the Japanese human-resources group's international portfolio. The transaction was reported at approximately €1.42 billion.

• 2008

  USG introduces takeover-defense preference-share structure[1]RGF Staffingen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  USG People established a preference-share defense through a company foundation as protection against possible unwanted acquisition attempts.

• 2005

  United Services Group adopts the USG People name after Solvus acquisition[1]RGF Staffingen.wikipedia.org

  M&A · Other

  Following the acquisition of Belgian staffing peer Solvus Resource Group, the group changed its corporate name from United Services Group to USG People.

1. 1RGF Staffingen.wikipedia.org