Founded by Paul Huntingdon in 1996, ARM has grown from its Hampshire roots into a national and international technical recruitment business supporting organisations across engineering, technology, infrastructure, life sciences, manufacturing, energy, defence, IT, professional services and more.
Over the past three decades, ARM has found jobs for tens of thousands of professionals while helping organisations secure talent across some of the most technically demanding sectors. In that time, it has placed candidates in more than fifty countries.
The business grew rapidly in its early years and in 2002 was recognised as the 54th fastest-growing company in the UK, in the Sunday Times Virgin Atlantic Fast Track 100. Since then, ARM has continued to develop its specialist markets and capabilities, expanding beyond its original service to deliver outsourcing partnerships and end-to-end recruitment solutions.
Paul Huntingdon, founder of ARM, said, “After working for a competitor, I believed there was a better way to build a recruitment business; one that put clients, candidates and our people first. My original ambition was simply to create a small team of good people who enjoyed coming to work, looked after one another and shared in the rewards of success. As we grew, so did our vision, but we never wanted to lose that family feel.
Thirty years on, what makes me proud isn't the awards or the growth, it's the relationships we've built, the careers we've helped shape, the businesses we've supported and the lives we've positively changed. That's a legacy worth celebrating.”
Leon Howgill, now Chief Commercial Officer of ARM, joined the business in 2000 when it employed around twelve people, and has seen both ARM and the recruitment industry change significantly.
Leon said, “Technology has transformed how we find and communicate with people, our capabilities have grown and the markets we work in have expanded, but the importance of building strong relationships hasn't changed.
We still work with clients whose relationships with ARM go back decades, and we've placed candidates several times as their careers have developed, with some going on to become senior leaders and clients themselves. Those relationships between our people, our clients and our candidates have always been fundamental to ARM.”
As it enters its fourth decade, ARM is continuing to grow internationally from its UK base, deepening its specialist focus across growth markets including AI, data centres, transport, infrastructure, various specialist engineering sectors, life sciences, cyber, SAP and more.
Leon added: “Thirty years is a significant milestone, but we're still evolving, still ambitious and still excited about where we're going next. There's a great team carrying ARM forward, and plenty more we want to do.”
