Categories > Other Services
5 Best Recruitment Agencies in Edinburgh
How We Picked
Credentials
We reviewed each agency’s years of experience and the recognitions/accreditations they might have. This is so you can better gauge their expertise and knowledge.
Industry Sectors
The range and the specialisations each agency has were also checked out. This will help you know which agency best fits your desired job role.
Efficiency
We’ve assessed the smoothness and promptness of their placement results, based on what their previous clients had to say.
Ease of Communication
Being accessible and responsive is important, so we assessed how well each agency communicates with their clients. This helps in letting clients feel valued and cared for.
1. Michael Page
Website: https://www.michaelpage.co.uk/
Address: 2 Castle Terrace, 2nd Floor, Edinburgh EH1 2EL, United Kingdom
Contact Details: +44 131 243 2900
Operating Hours: Mon-Fri: 8AM–6:30PM
Google reviews score | 4.7/5 |
Trustpilot reviews score | 3.7/5 |
Score consistency | 4.5/5 |
Total Reviews | 4.3/5 |
Credentials | 5/5 |
>Years of Experience | 5/5 |
>Recognitions/Accreditations | 5/5 |
Industry Sectors | 5/5 |
>Range | 5/5 |
>Specialisations | 5/5 |
Efficiency | 4/5 |
Ease of Communication | 3/5 |
Pros
- Award-winning agency with 38 years of experience Prestigious partnerships
- ISO 27001 certified
- Has 25 expertise areas
Cons
- Reports of long wait times
- Uncommunicative
Michael Page is an award-winning recruitment agency with 38 years of experience. Their most recent win is the prestigious Recruitment Industry Disability Initiative in 2021.
We are very impressed with what clients have shared about this agency. It seems that they loved how responsive, supportive, and professional most of their consultants were throughout the entire hiring process.
We’d also like to highlight their commendable partnerships and accreditations. One of those is Ambitious About Autism, which champions the rights of those with autism and helps provide them with opportunities.
They also have an ISO 27001 certification – an auditable international standard that not all agencies are able to get.
In addition, this company has a very wide range of specialisations. They offer various positions – from banking and financial services and even not-for-profit companies – ensuring that clients would have diverse options to choose from.
Unfortunately, some clients have reported that they had to wait for months before being placed. This could make life difficult for people who are urgently in need of employment or employees.
They also feel like the consultants could be uncommunicative at times. They would call outside their promised timeframes, and sometimes, they wouldn’t respond to inquiries at all.
Hopefully, they don’t take these issues lightly and work on addressing them as soon as possible. This will help make all of their clients feel valued.
2. Eden Scott
Website: https://www.edenscott.com/
Address: 132 Princes St, Edinburgh EH2 4AH, United Kingdom
Contact Details: +44 131 550 1100
Operating Hours: Mon-Fri: 8:30AM–5:30PM
Google reviews score | 4.9/5 |
Facebook reviews score | 5/5 |
Score consistency | 5/5 |
Total Reviews | 4.96/5 |
Credentials | 4/5 |
>Years of Experience | 5/5 |
>Recognitions/Accreditations | 3/5 |
Industry Sectors | 4.5/5 |
>Range | 4/5 |
>Specialisations | 5/5 |
Efficiency | 4/5 |
Ease of Communication | 3/5 |
Pros
- Has been in the business since 2003
- Has a TalentSpark service specific to start-ups and early-stage companies
- Professional and friendly consultants
- Prestigious featured employers
Cons
- Limited sector variety
- Could work on being more responsive
A thriving agency since 2003, Eden Scott is one of the best recruitment agencies in Edinburgh.
First off, this agency offers a unique TalentSpark recruitment service specifically made for start-ups and early-stage companies. We think it’s cool that they offer this unique niche in the industry.
According to their previous clients, they had professional and friendly consultants. They were happy with how some went above and beyond, even helping them prepare for interviews!
If you are looking to find a prestigious employer, then you’re in luck since they have an impressive roster. Some of their featured employers are Audit Scotland, Eden Legal, NHS Golden Jubilee, and University of Glasgow.
The downside is that they have a limited sector variety. Thus, some employees might not fit into these specific industries.
We’ve also heard reports of consultants not being responsive to queries. Promises of callbacks were disregarded and emails were ignored repeatedly, making their clients feel frustrated.
Being responsive is an important trait for recruitment agencies to have since so many decisions are based on the updates they give.
If you are a start-up company, then we think Eden Scott is the best option for you due to their TalentSpark recruitment service.
3. Reed Recruitment Agency
Website: https://www.reed.com/
Address: Ardmore House, 40 George St, Edinburgh EH2 2LE, United Kingdom
Contact Details: +44 131 240 3680
Operating Hours: Mon-Fri: 8AM–6PM
Google reviews score | 4.6/5 |
Trustpilot reviews score | 4.1/5 |
Score consistency | 4.8/5 |
Total Reviews | 4.5/5 |
Credentials | 4.5.5 |
>Years of Experience | 5/5 |
>Recognitions/Accreditations | 4/5 |
Industry Sectors | 4.75/5 |
>Range | 4.5/5 |
>Specialisations | 5/5 |
Efficiency | 3.5/5 |
Ease of Communication | 3/5 |
Pros
- Operating since 1960
- Efficient and knowledgeable consultants
- Has a wide range of specialisations
- Has admirable inclusive programmes
- Offers an apprenticeship and internship programme
Cons
- Some staff members need better training in industry knowledge
- Some consultants can be rude
Since 1960, Reed Recruitment Agency has pioneered specialist recruitment, matching knowledgeable, skilled professionals for jobs across the UK.
Their previous clients spoke highly of their efficient and knowledgeable consultants. They said that their consultants were there for them from start to finish,which made them feel special and cared for.
They have a wide range of specialisations which include accountancy, NHS, social work. So, you can be assured that they’ll be able to help you reach a varied and diverse range of employers and employees.
This agency also created an inclusion strategy which has four metrics: women in leadership, disability, ethnic minority inclusion and LGBTQ+. We think it is admirable and truly shows their commitment to bettering the lives of their clients.
Another thing we like about this firm is that they have an award-winning apprenticeship and internship programme. This aims to help unemployed people take their first steps into a recruitment and technology career.
Sadly, we’ve heard some reports about their staff not being knowledgeable in terms of matching people, resulting in ineffective matches. Perhaps, further training could remedy this issue.
Also, some consultants were said to be downright rude. Clients have reported unprofessional conversations they’ve had, which made them decide to change firms.
Hopefully, additional training, particularly in sensitivity, could help rectify this.
4. Robert Half
Website: https://www.roberthalf.co.uk/
Address: Robert Half – Spaces 1 Lochrin Square 92-98, Edinburgh EH3 9QA, United Kingdom
Contact Details: +44 131 202 7976
Operating Hours: Mon-Fri: 9AM–5:30PM
Google reviews score | 4.6/5 |
Facebook reviews score | 4.2/5 |
Score consistency | 4.9/5 |
Total Reviews | 4.56/5 |
Credentials | 5/5 |
>Years of Experience | 5/5 |
>Recognitions/Accreditations | 5/5 |
Industry Sectors | 3.5/5 |
Range | 3/5 |
>Specialisations | 4/5 |
Efficiency | 3/5 |
Ease of Communication | 3/5 |
Pros
- Pioneered the idea of professional talent solutions nearly 70 years ago
- Obtained several awards
- Helpful and skilled consultants
- Offers a special service for remote workers
Cons
- Limited specialisations
- Client representation needs more work
- Time management issues
Robert Half touts itself as the pioneer of professional talent solutions. Having been in operations for 70 years, we’re inclined to agree with them.
Impressively, they have been accoladed with the Fortune World’s Most Admired Companies in 2022 and Forbes World’s Best 2022 Employers. These awards serve as proof of their expertise and industry knowledge.
We also applaud their helpful and skilled consultants. Employees appreciated how they managed to match them with perfect roles that suited their skill sets.
In addition, they offer a special service for remote workers. Since this is a growing and unique niche in the employment field, we think this service is quite helpful.
They do, however, have a limited specialisation range. So, clients would need to fit in these specialisations or look for another recruitment firm.
We also think that they should work on their client representation because some have pointed out that it is “horrible.” Some clients felt that they were not being seen or heard properly.
Aside from that, they also lack proper time management skills. Several clients have rescheduled meetings repeatedly because the firm kept changing the times or canceling at the last minute without clear reasons why.
For an award-winning company, these issues should not be ignored. We hope they work on addressing these right away.
5. Office Angels Edinburgh
Website: https://www.office-angels.com/
Address: 50 Frederick St, Edinburgh EH2 1NG, United Kingdom
Contact Details: +44 131 226 6112
Operating Hours: Mon-Fri: 9AM–5:30PM
Google reviews score | 4.8/5 |
Facebook reviews score | 4.2/5 |
Score consistency | 4.8/5 |
Total Reviews | 4.6/5 |
Credentials | 4.5/5 |
>Years of Experience | 5/5 |
>Recognitions/Accreditations | 4/5 |
Industry Sectors | 3.75/5 |
>Range | 4/5 |
>Specialisations | 3.5/5 |
Efficiency | 3/5 |
Ease of Communication | 5/5 |
Pros
- Has 30 years’ worth of experience
- Professional, supportive, and proactive attitude
- Charitable agency
- Created powerful projects for gender equality
Cons
- Narrow range of specialisations
- Poor organisational skills
Having an impressive 30 years’ worth of experience under its belt, the Office Angels Edinburgh agency definitely knows the ins and outs of the recruitment industry.
It’s no wonder that clients have been raving about their professional, supportive, and proactive consultants. Apparently, they were not only extremely professional, but they were kind as well.
We also appreciate their sustainability efforts by supporting charities for the environment. One of which is Trees for life, which aims to rewild the Scottish Highland forests.
They also created powerful projects to help support gender equality – which we are all for! Some of these projects are the Inspiring Women’s Network and Gender Programme Board.
In terms of the specialisations they offer, it is pretty narrow, focusing only on 12 while others offer relatively more. Thus, they might not be able to satisfy all of their potential clients.
Clients have also observed their poor organisational skills. We were told that some files were not forwarded to the relevant recruiters, and there were instances when they mixed up client information by sending them to the wrong businesses.
We do hope that the employees of Office Angels improve their organisational skills since we admire their charitable efforts and proactive consultants.