Partner Article

Recruitment giant Randstad hires ESP Law

National recruitment specialist Randstad – part of the global leader in HR services – has appointed Woking- based ESP Law as its employment law partner.

Recognising the increasing costs of such legal and advisory services, Randstad switched to a partnership – rather than pay-per-use – model several years ago. But keen to foster a more strategic, value-adding relationship with its provider of choice, HR Director Graham Trevor recently evaluated the market for a possible new supplier.

Research brought Randstad to ABS employment law firm ESP Law and conversations with existing customers soon accelerated the switch.

“With 1400 employees and more than 40 UK offices, we work with thousands of clients and candidates each week,” explains Graham. “The pace and level of service that we provide therefore means we place significant importance on our employee relations (ER).

“We didn’t just want to have tighter control of our legal costs by appointing an employment law partner – we also wanted to enhance our in-house employment law capabilities, ensure we are operating in the fairest and most respectful way towards our staff, and work with a commercially-focused legal partner who would act as a knowledgeable, forward-thinking sounding board as we grow. We have a lot of in-house talent but this support further bolsters our capabilities to give employees, candidates and clients complete peace of mind.”

As well as delivering tailored legal advice over the phone, via email and online, ESP also provides Randstad with access to a specialist online employment law resource portal, plus a unique ER case management software application that allows customers to manage both in-house ER matters and ESP Law instructed matters.

“As soon as I’d met members of the ESP team I knew this was the right employment law partner for our ambitious business,” adds Graham. “They share our values, have a demonstrable amount of expertise and prioritise a long-term partnership approach to their client relationships. It was obvious from the outset that they would be committed to getting to know the nuances of our organisation and our approach to HR, so that they could offer tailored and highly commercial legal advice. “This is so much more powerful – and valuable – than a company providing ad-hoc legal support. We work proactively in all areas of our business, so it follows that this should be no different.”

The partnership represents a new three-year contract between Randstad and ESP.

ESP Law is part of the ESPHR Group – a provider of specialist legal advice, online employment law and HR resources, ER case management software solutions and wider integrated HR consulting and training. The team is in the running for Employment Law Firm of the Year 2018 at the prestigious Personnel Today Award ceremony in November.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Katie Mallinson .