When it came time to expand, United Kingdom company Frank Recruitment Group scoured the United States for a likely site.
The winner? Dallas, thanks to its emerging tech sector.
In announcing the move, Frank Recruitment cited Texas as “a booming hub of technology innovation,” with more than half a million workers in the tech sector.
FRANK RECRUITMENT NOTED DALLAS’ BOUNTY OF TECH WORKERS
That’s the second highest number in the nation, and Dallas has the largest share, making it an easy choice, the company said in a release.
Frank Recruitment noted that Dallas recently grabbed headlines being named as one of the nation’s best tech cities in which to work.
The Dallas group will be focus primarily on the company’s signature brand, Nigel Frank International, a global leader in Microsoft technology recruitment.
“Dallas has a huge group of talented, hard-working and highly motivated people.”
Paden Simmons
It will be led by NFI Executive Vice President Paul Briggs and Vice President Paden Simmons.
“Dallas has a huge group of talented, hard-working and highly motivated people,” Simmons said in a release. “Many college graduates and young professionals are starting their careers and moving here and, everywhere you look, businesses are growing or relocating to Texas. It’s a really exciting time to be working in Dallas right now.”
All those qualities made Dallas a good fit.
“They decided Dallas had the best spot, and the best culture they were working for,” said Robbie Baty, senior director with Cushman & Wakefield’s Dallas office.
Baty, along with local Cushman Director Travis Boothe and Seth Hecht, senior director in Cushman & Wakefield’s New York office, represented the British company in negotiating the long-term lease for 12,000 square feet of space on Ross Tower’s 24th floor, in downtown Dallas.
The official office opening will take place mid-June, 2017, marking Frank Recruitment’s first foray into the Southern U.S. Offices are already up and running in New York and Philadelphia, as well as Berlin, German.
The company, headquartered in Newcastle Upon Tyne, currently operates out of temporary quarters at Ross Tower.
Initial plans are to hire 150 employees, then expand by 300 more within the next few years.
“They didn’t want to have to wait until the office opened to get started.”
Robbie Baty
“They didn’t want to have to wait until the office opened to get started,” Baty said of Frank Recruitment. “I’ve never seen a group with such ambitious growth plans in terms of entering a market, then hiring.”
TPG Growth, the middle market and growth equity investment platform of Fort Worth-based TPG, acquired Frank Recruitment in spring 2016, helping the recruiting firm to grow rapidly.
That growth was one of the reasons why Ross Tower proved to be a great locale for the British company.
“There is room for expansion. It’s one of the reasons we picked the building,” Baty said.
HPI Real Estate, Bandera Ventures, and Second City Real Estate acquired the 45-story Ross Tower at 500 N. Akard St. in 2015, and is in the final phases of a multimillion-dollar redevelopment.
Additions have included a canopied drive court and plaza, Wi-Fi lounge, corporate living room and board room. A full-service Starbucks coffee shop is now open, with an outdoor entrance and street-level patio coming before the end of May.
“I think it validates the investments that individuals in the city have been making in the core; it validates that it’s worthwhile.”
Robbie Baty
“The building also has a strong parking ratio, which is a unique feature to be able to offer,” Baty said.
Frank Recruitment researched many of the Dallas-Fort Worth submarkets, with the central business district coming out on top because of its walkability, young workforce and the amenities both in Ross Tower and downtown Dallas.
“I think it validates the investments that individuals in the city have been making in the core; it validates that it’s worthwhile,” Baty commented. “An international company like this could have gone anywhere. The fact that they chose Dallas as a major hub speaks volumes as to the momentum in the market.”
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