December 13, 2021
SThree plc, a UK-based global recruitment company specializing in STEM skills, has announced that chief executive Mark Dorman will step down as CEO and board member effective December 31. Timo Lehne will serve as interim CEO. Lehne is Senior Managing Director of SThree’s largest region – the DACH region, which covers Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Dorman will help the company facilitate a smooth handover and transition through April 1.
“I have agreed with the board that this is a good time for a change for SThree and me, for personal reasons,” Dorman said. “It has been a privilege to lead SThree through such extraordinary times, working with talented, dedicated and values-driven people for nearly three years.”
SThree also announced today that net expenses, or gross profit, increased 19% on a constant currency basis in its fiscal year ended Nov. 30. The company reported increased demand for STEM skills.
Gross profit
| (in millions of £) | FISCAL YEAR 2021 | FISCAL YEAR 2020 | % change constant currency | FISCAL YEAR 2021 (millions of US dollars) |
| Contract | £266.1 | £233.4 | 17% | $354.5 |
| Permanent | £89.6 | £75.2 | 24% | $119.4 |
| Total | £355.7 | £308.6 | 19% | $473.9 |
“The group expects to deliver record full-year profits, in line with consensus expectations, which were raised significantly in September 2021,” Dorman said.
The fastest gross profit growth was seen in Germany, followed by Japan and the United States. Looking only at the United States, SThree said its gross profit was up 24% in constant currency.
Gross profit by geography
| (in millions of £) | FISCAL YEAR 2021 | FISCAL YEAR 2020 | % change constant currency | FISCAL YEAR 2021 (millions of US dollars) |
| Germany | £117.8 | £96.9 | 23% | $156.9 |
| Netherlands | £55.6 | £47.3 | 19% | $74.1 |
| UK | £37.8 | £35.1 | 8% | $50.4 |
| we | £89.3 | £77.2 | 24% | $119.0 |
| Japan | £6.9 | £5.9 | 27% | $9.2 |
| Rest of the world | £48.3 | £46.2 | seven% | $64.3 |
SThree noted that technology gross profit in the United States increased by 35% thanks to strong demand for software development, Salesforce skills and mobile applications. Life sciences, the company’s largest sector in the United States, saw its gross profit increase by 25% with roles in clinical operations, biometrics and quality assurance in demand. Engineering gross profit increased 11% thanks to increased roles in renewable energy sectors such as wind and solar farms as well as battery storage.
SThree is not affiliated with Detroit-based Strategic Staffing Solutions (S3).
Stock price and market capitalization
Shares of SThree closed down 13.19% at £474.00 (US$628.60) in London today; they were 22.30% below their 52-week high, according to FT.com. The company had a market cap of £729.6 million (US$967.6 million).
