VolkerWessels
How VolkerWessels implemented Recruitee + HirePort and streamlined agency management across 55 subsidiary Companies
Netherlands, United Kingdom, North-America, Germany
Location
Construction
Industry
VolkerWessels, one of the Netherlands' largest infrastructure, construction, real estate development and engineering companies
VolkerWessels, one of the Netherlands' largest infrastructure, construction, real estate development and engineering companies, operates through 55 decentralized businesses with approximately 9,000 employees in the Netherlands and has in addition three divisions in the United Kindom, North America and Germany. Max, part of the Corporate Development team at VolkerWessels, was tasked with modernizing recruitment across this complex organization while managing relationships with over 50 recruitment agencies. "I needed a solution where I could post a vacancy to an agency with one push of a button," Max explains. "Not deal with endless emails and manual processes."
About VolkerWessels
VolkerWessels is a leading Dutch construction and engineering company operating through 55 individual businesses. These range from specialized firms to large operations like KWS (road construction), Aveco de Bondt (engineering & advisory) and Visser & Smit Bouw (construction) , each with unique recruitment needs and varying levels of recruitment expertise.
INDUSTRY
Infrastructure, construction, real estate development and engineering
EMPLOYEE COUNT
9,000 in the Netherlands
COUNTRIES ACTIVE
Netherlands, United Kingdom, North-America, Germany
STRUCTURE
Decentralized operations with varying recruitment needs per location
ATS
Recruitee

Implementation and Impact
Working with implementation partner MatchLab, VolkerWessels achieved a remarkably fast deployment despite the compressed timeline:
Lightning-fast implementation
"In the beginning, agencies were somewhat resistant," Tessa admits. "They were saying 'Q-Park is coming with yet another application we have to use.' But after we had three-way conversations between us, the agencies, and HirePort, they really started seeing the advantages."
Decentralized approach
"lf I have to calculate it conservatively, 1 save several days per quarter," Tessa reports. "Just on organizing my input alone. Everything is centralized. Everyone knows where to find things and where to put things."
Improved visibility
The recent move to full white-label integration within Recruitee has been transformative: "One don't have to click six different things anymore. Especially after the last update - fantastic! Everything is now in one place."
Streamlined communication
The recent move to full white-label integration within Recruitee has been transformative: "One don't have to click six different things anymore. Especially after the last update - fantastic! Everything is now in one place."
Dramatic efficiency gains
"Speed matters in recruitment, but so does having the right communication tools. HirePort keeps building on bath fronts. With every update, it aligns better with how we actually work."
Adapting to Specific Needs
As VolkerWessels' structure required a unique approach, HirePort's flexibility proved crucial: "Yes, we now work with our talent partners like Brunel across various instances within our group," Max acknowledges. "But the trade-off is worth it - each business unit has visibility into their own agency relationships and performance. That’s very valuable to us so we can optimize for speed and spend." The white-label integration was particularly important: "You go from an external link to an integration in the system. That's very intuitive. There aren't too many bells and whistles, which is exactly what we needed."
Looking Ahead
With the new efficiencies in place, VolkerWessels is now focusing on:
Allowing individual business units to optimize their own agency relationships
Gathering more detailed performance metrics now that the foundation is in place
Max's approach is pragmatic: "When it runs, it runs. Then I mainly leave it to the operating companies themselves."
Conclusion
By implementing HirePort alongside Recruitee, VolkerWessels transformed how they manage recruitment across 55 businesses and 50+ agencies. The solution balanced the need for centralized efficiency with decentralized autonomy.
"I would certainly recommend it," Max concludes. "The system looks great and works easily. It's very intuitive - exactly what you need when you're not one company of 9,000, but rather 55 slightly larger SME companies. HirePort makes agency management as simple as internal recruitment, and that's exactly what we needed."
