Beware over-optimistic recruitment firms
In any sales job it helps to be upbeat, up-tempo, and ever so slightly delusional about the potential of your market. But interim management and executive search Hexagon Human Capital appears to have taken this optimism one step too far.
Hexagon's stock fell nearly 78% at one point this morning after it emerged that the company had been too optimistic in forecasting its trading revenues, and can't pay its tax bill as a result.
The stock has since recovered slightly (possibly on rumours of an alleged bid by former management who put the optimistic forecasts together), but is still down 38% on yesterday.
Hexagon's businesses include interim management company BIE and Correlate Executive Search, the financial services headhunting firm.
It's not clear which part of the business the over-optimism applied to, but Correlate for one has been sounding rather bullish.
This time last year, it hired eight consultants in Asia. A few weeks ago, it added three new consultants (including one in Dubai). At the time, managing director Gavin Bonnet issued a statement to the effect that, "The recent hiring activity underlines our commitment to the market place [sic] and our confidence in the upturn in activity we have seen in the past six months."
Bonnet didn't return calls asking for comment on the latest developments. However, Hexagon chief executive Rob Walker said trading has now "stabilized."
