Introducing SF Partners: A new chapter for SF Recruitment.

SF Recruitment is now SF Partners.

Introducing SF Partners

A new chapter for SF Recruitment

After more than two decades of growth, SF Recruitment is becoming SF Partners.

Founded in Birmingham in 1998, the business began as a specialist provider of finance and accountancy recruitment across the Midlands. Since then, both the scale of our business and the scope of our work have evolved significantly.

Today SF Partners operates across the UK and internationally, with offices in Birmingham, London, the East Midlands, Manchester and Frankfurt. Alongside our finance heritage, we now work across six specialist practice areas:

• Executive Search
• Finance
• Technology
• Transformation
• Engineering
• Professional Services

Our new name reflects something that has increasingly defined how we work: partnership.

SF Partners at a glance

Since founding the business in 1998, we have grown into a specialist recruitment and advisory firm operating across the UK and internationally.

In numbers:

• Nearly 60,000 successful placements
• 15,000+ client organisations supported
• 500+ private equity-backed mandates delivered
• Offices in Birmingham, London, the East Midlands, Manchester and Frankfurt
• 11 years average specialist experience across our team
• Six specialist practice areas across Executive Search, Finance, Technology, Transformation, Engineering and Professional Services.

More than two decades of growth

The move to SF Partners comes at a time of significant momentum for our business.

Since 2020 we have:

• More than doubled our revenue
• Expanded our headcount by over 200%
• Opened our first international office in Frankfurt
• Delivered more than 500 private equity-backed mandates

We’re also approaching an important milestone, with nearly 60,000 successful placements since we were founded - an average of more than 2,200 hires every year.

As our business has grown, the nature of our work has evolved too. Today we support organisations with an increasing number of mid-to-senior appointments, executive search assignments and investor-backed mandates.

Why we chose the name SF Partners

Over the years we have built strong relationships with both clients and candidates.

It is not unusual for us to place someone multiple times throughout their career and later support them as they move into leadership roles and begin building their own teams.

When we spoke to clients and candidates about what differentiates us, one word came up repeatedly: partnership.

As our business has grown and matured, we felt it was time for our name to reflect the way we already work.

The importance of relationships in recruitment

Technology is continuing to reshape parts of the recruitment process, and we embrace the benefits that innovation can bring.

But we believe the real value in recruitment still lies in understanding people and organisations properly.

That means taking the time to build relationships, offer honest advice and focus on long-term fit rather than quick wins.

These principles have guided our approach for more than two decades and remain central to how we work today.

Building specialist expertise

Alongside growth, we have focused on strengthening the depth of expertise within our teams.

Since 2020 we have deliberately invested in experienced consultants with deep sector knowledge and strong professional networks. Today our employees average 11 years of specialist experience, roughly double the industry average.

This expertise allows us to provide informed advice and meaningful support to the organisations and professionals we work with.

Alongside our recruitment services, we also provide advisory and consultancy support including Private Equity Pre-Deal Support and Insights Discovery® coaching.

Looking ahead

As we move forward as SF Partners, our focus remains on continuing to build strong relationships with the organisations and professionals we support.

We will continue investing in our specialist teams and international reach, helping organisations navigate complex hiring challenges and supporting candidates as they develop their careers.

Over the next three years, we aim to grow our revenues by a further 50%, building on the momentum we have developed in recent years.

While our name is evolving, the principle behind it is not.

Everything we do is built on partnership - and that will continue to define our business as SF Partners.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why has SF Recruitment changed its name to SF Partners?
We wanted our brand to better reflect the long-term partnerships we build with both clients and candidates. As the business has grown, partnership has increasingly defined how we work.

Has the business ownership changed?
No. The rebrand reflects the evolution of the business rather than a change in ownership.

What does this mean for clients and candidates?
Our teams, services and specialist expertise remain the same. The new name simply reflects the partnership-led approach that has always been central to how we work.

Is SF Recruitment still operating?

Yes. SF Recruitment has simply changed its name to SF Partners. The same team, services and specialist recruitment expertise remain in place.