About
Our Business Model
Ever since our foundation, Recruit Group has sought to act as a meeting place that brings together individual users and business clients, with a focus on services in the field of life-events and lifestyle, such as housing & real estate, beauty, dining and others. By providing a common platform through which users can find the service that best meets their needs, and business owners can connect with their ideal customers, we can facilitate the best possible matches for the mutual benefit of both parties. We also strive to support the operations of businesses in Japan to help improve their productivity and profitability by offering cloud-based SaaS (Software as a Service) solutions.
Faster, Simpler and Closer: Matching through Technology
Thanks to the Internet and the mass adoption of smartphones, we now have a wealth of information at our fingertips. This also brings with it the need for increasingly sophisticated solutions to facilitate the best matches. At Recruit Group, we are actively integrating new technologies to ensure that our business model continues to meet the needs of a rapidly changing society through the creation of opportunities that enable every individual to shine.
Our Group Structure
Recruit Group consists of three autonomous Strategic Business Units (SBUs) and Recruit Holdings. This structure allows Recruit Holdings to focus on the operation of a holding company, and also enhances the corporate value of each SBU by enabling faster execution of business strategies.
HR Technology SBU
Through brands including Indeed and Glassdoor, HR Technology SBU operates a global two-sided marketplace where job seekers find jobs and employers find great talent in more than 60 countries and regions.
Learn more about the business model of HR Technology SBUStaffing SBU
Staffing SBU operates a comprehensive temporary staffing service in Europe, the US and the Asia Pacific region, including Japan and Australia. The division promotes flexible and varied working styles to meet the needs of job seekers and companies in the ever-changing global labor market.
Learn more about the business model of Staffing SBUMarketing Matching Technologies SBU*1
Marketing Matching Technologies SBU offers matching platforms, which connect individual users with business clients across various industries, including housing & real estate, beauty, travel, dining, and cloud-based SaaS (Software as a Service) solutions, which are business and management support tools.
Learn more about the business model of Marketing Matching Technologies SBU- *1Matching & Solutions SBU was renamed Marketing Matching Technologies SBU in FY2025.
Overview of Our Business
HR Technology SBU’s Business Model
Within HR Technology SBU, the Indeed and Glassdoor platforms have partnered to offer a suite of products and services for job seekers that make getting a job simpler, faster, and more human. These products and services include job search, resume posting, company information, community features, and scheduling and conducting video and phone interviews. Each platform brings unique services to the partnership, creating a global talent marketplace.
For employers, both Indeed and Glassdoor offer solutions to recruit and hire qualified talent in an easier and more efficient way. Employers can post and advertise jobs and build their company's employment brand across both platforms, reaching a broad and varied job seeker audience. Together, they provide an efficient source of candidates through a pay-for-performance pricing model and provide a range of products for employers to source, screen, interact with, and interview candidates. In addition, offering real-time conversations and communities enables employers to make more informed decisions.
The scale of the two-sided marketplace created by the Indeed and Glassdoor partnership is evidenced by the 3.3 million employers*1 that use Indeed each year to hire and the 610 million Job Seeker Profiles*2 on Indeed and Glassdoor. Job seekers search for jobs, create and update profiles, and research and engage in real-time conversations about companies and jobs.
In Japan, Recruit Group has expanded the job seeker audience further through Indeed PLUS, a job distribution platform which connects a network of Applicant Tracking Systems and job boards, including Recruit’s Rikunabi NEXT and TOWNWORK as well as other Recruit and third party websites.
Additionally, RECRUIT AGENT and RECRUIT DIRECT SCOUT, the placement services, which were transferred to HR Technology SBU from Marketing Matching Technologies SBU as of April 1, 2025, utilize Recruit Group’s matching engine to streamline processes like screening resumes, a previously manual process. By combining Indeed’s technology, data and scale with more than 60 years of HR matching expertise in the Japanese market, the Group aims to accelerate its Simplify Hiring strategy in Japan.
- *1Internal data, based on the last 12 months of activity as of March 2025, worldwide
- *2Internal data, cumulative number of verified job seeker accounts on Indeed through March 31, 2025, worldwide. Job seeker accounts that have a unique, verified email address
Delivering more value to job seekers and employers
In HR Technology SBU, we are automating many of the steps in the hiring process to make it faster, easier, and more cost efficient for job seekers and employers to connect in our talent marketplace.
More engagement on our platforms will allow us to improve the quality and speed of matching.
Learn more about Indeed Matching Technology
Primary Global Products*1
Standard and Premium | Smart Sourcing | Talent Scout | Career Scout |
| Sponsor your job for more visibility and go Premium to instantly match with quality candidates with candidate targeting, AI matching tools, and more. | Instantly match and connect with quality talent from Indeed’s pool of millions of candidates. | An intelligent, conversational AI agent for employers to quickly find, connect with, and hire top candidates. It leverages Indeed's vast talent pool of millions of searchable profiles and data from millions of jobs. | A personal AI career coach that helps job seekers navigate their search—exploring career paths, finding jobs, tailoring their resume, filling out applications, preparing for interviews, and more. |
| Click here for more information | Click here for more information | Click here for more information | Click here for more information |
- *1 Features are subject to change and may vary by location and customer. See below and “Click here for more information” to learn more about pricing and features.
Primary Global Products
Sponsored Jobs
A Sponsored Job is a paid job posting at Indeed. Employers have two different opportunities to optimize and maximize job posting performance on Indeed by Sponsoring their job*2.
Standard Sponsored Jobs
- Better job post visibility: Sponsored Jobs have more staying power in search results than non-sponsored jobs, so they’re seen by active job seekers. That means employers are more likely to reach the applicants they’re looking for. Sponsored Jobs posted directly on Indeed with a Standard plan at the recommended budget have 6.5X more applications than non-sponsored jobs*2.
- Reach more candidates: Indeed will include the employer’s job in email notifications sent to relevant job seekers in our database, actively placing their job in front of the right talent for their role.
- Create a positive candidate experience: Indeed can send automated messages to engage top candidates on employers’ behalf at key moments of the hiring process, like when they apply to a job, are added to a shortlist, or when an employer rejects an application from the employer dashboard.
- Pay for performance: Employers receive applications at the right pace for their hiring needs, using market insights to set a competitive budget and they can start and stop sponsoring their job posts at any time.
- *2Indeed data, US
Premium Sponsored Jobs
- Candidate targeting: Indeed will show an employer’s job post to active job seekers in search results, who meet their criteria like skills, certifications, licenses, degrees and location. Employers can also amplify the reach of their Sponsored Job from Indeed to existing audiences on specialized industry sites to reach skilled candidates. In fact, employers who use Sponsored Jobs posted directly on Indeed with a Premium plan move forward in the hiring process with 3.2X more applicants compared to non-sponsored jobs*3.
- Proactive matching: Employers can immediately view candidates whose resumes on Indeed fit their job description and invite them to apply. Their messages will also get delivered by text to candidates who have SMS messaging turned on, increasing their chances of connecting with the right candidate faster.
- Quick, efficient, memorable connections: With Premium Sponsored jobs, the employer’s role is prioritized over similar job posts, and they have the option to add attention-grabbing visuals, like company logos and images, and the Urgently Hiring label to help their job stand out. Sponsored Jobs posted directly on Indeed with Urgently Hiring make a hire 5 days faster than non-sponsored jobs*4. We’ll also show the employer candidate highlights to shorten their review time and provide them with auto-generated personalized messages to contact applicants.
- *3Indeed data, US
- *4Indeed data, US
Sponsored Job Budgeting/Pricing Details
Indeed provides a recommended budget based on the criteria employers provide, such as job title, location, and job description.
The Standard price is generated based on Indeed's recommendation system, which takes into account market factors such as job competitiveness, the employer’s hiring timeline, and the supply of job seekers for specific job titles, among other factors.
The employer is free to set a different amount as long as it meets the minimum required for that job.
The minimum price will appear on the product sponsorship page and will depend on several factors, including available job seekers in the employer’s market, similar job posts bidding for priority placement, and the type of Sponsored Jobs plan selected, among others.
The Premium price is set above the Standard price to help ensure more applications from quality candidates quickly compared to Standard Sponsored Jobs. This way, an employer’s Premium Sponsored Job is competitive against similar roles on Indeed.
Many jobs can be posted for free, subject to Indeed's terms, conditions, quality standards, and usage limits. Feature availability for Free job posts is limited and is subject to change at Indeed's discretion.
Pay Per Click budgeting and pricing information
Pay Per Started Apply budgeting and pricing information
Primary Japan Products
Indeed PLUS | RECRUIT AGENT |
| A job distribution platform which connects a network of Applicant Tracking Systems (“ATS”) and job boards, including Indeed and Recruit’s Rikunabi NEXT and TOWNWORK, as well as other Recruit and third-party sites. | RECRUIT AGENT provides comprehensive recruitment support services to employers, from clarifying hiring requirements to candidate selection, interview coordination, and post-offer follow-up, by introducing highly qualified and immediately effective talent. |
| Click here for more information | Click here for more information (Japanese only) |
Primary Japan Products
Indeed PLUS
Indeed PLUS is a job distribution platform which connects a network of Applicant Tracking Systems (“ATS”) and job boards, including Indeed and Recruit’s Rikunabi NEXT and TOWNWORK, as well as other Recruit and third-party sites. With a single job post, your job post is automatically distributed across multiple leading partner job sites, helping you reach a broader pool of job seekers*1 *2.
- Reach more job seekers: Your job post can reach up to approximately 70% of users*3 on major domestic job sites with just one submission*4. This allows for broader outreach to potential candidates.
- Standardized formats for centralized applicant management: Standardizing the job post and application formats enables centralized management of applicants—contributing to a more streamlined hiring process.
- Faster and more efficient hiring through optimized matching: Each job is automatically published to the most suitable partner site based on Indeed’s AI-powered matching technology*2. This helps accelerate hiring outcomes.
- Pay Per Click: With Indeed PLUS, you only pay when a job seeker clicks on your job post. This click-based pricing allows for flexible budgeting aligned with your hiring goals—supporting more cost-effective recruitment.
- *1Depending on optimization results, a job post may be published on only one partner site instead of multiple. The types of partner sites and publication timing are subject to change.
- *2Of the partner job sites connected to Indeed PLUS, listings are automatically published to the site deemed most relevant by Indeed, based on job content, characteristics, and application behavior.
- *3Values, Inc. Market Share Survey, June 2024 (Percentage of users who use Indeed, TOWNWORK, Travail, Hatalike, From A Navi, Rikunabi NEXT, and Rikunabi Haken among people who use major job sites in Japan at least two days a year. The data was compiled using approximately 60 competing job sites, excluding recruiting and other services, and without taking into account overlap between PCs and smartphones)
- *4Use of Indeed PLUS is subject to Indeed’s Terms of Service, Posting Guidelines, and Usage Restrictions.
RECRUIT AGENT
RECRUIT AGENT operates a placement service on a fully success-based fee model. Industry- and role-specialized advisors provide tailored support based on each client’s needs and challenges, offering end-to-end assistance, from recruitment to onboarding, for both individuals seeking a career change and employers looking to hire talent.
RECRUIT AGENT provides comprehensive recruitment support services to employers, from clarifying hiring requirements to candidate selection, interview coordination, and post- offer follow-up, by introducing highly qualified and immediately effective talent.
For individuals seeking career changes, industry-specialized career advisors provide personalized support tailored to each job seeker’s concerns, aspirations, and uncertainties. This includes advice on how to write application documents, interview preparation, and sharing industry and company insights derived from proprietary analysis to help them make more informed career choices.
RECRUIT AGENT also leverages the Recruit Group’s matching engine to streamline previously manual processes such as resume screening. By combining over 60 years of Recruit’s experience in Japan’s talent matching business with the insights and technology Indeed has developed by supporting employers and job seekers around the world, we are actively advancing our Simplify Hiring strategy in the Japanese market.
Service Introduction Clip ※Only in Japanese
【リクルートエージェント】サービス紹介ムービー（Long ver.）Please visit here to learn more about RECRUIT AGENT ※Only in Japanese
Staffing SBU’s Business Model
Staffing SBU offers comprehensive temporary staffing services tailored to the needs of job seekers and business clients through two major operations in Japan and Europe, US, and Australia. The SBU implements the Unit Management System, which divides an organization into smaller units based on differences in the markets they serve. Each unit is regarded as a distinct company, and the Unit Manager is given authority to make decisions to maximize each unit's profitability.
For Staffing SBU, revenue includes the personnel cost for temporary staff, which is also accounted for as cost of goods sold (“CoGS”), and consequently CoGS as a percentage of revenue is higher compared to other SBUs.
As a result, adjusted EBITDA margin, calculated by dividing adjusted EBITDA by revenue, is lower compared to other SBUs. However, the ratio of adjusted EBITDA to total gross profit, calculated by subtracting CoGS from revenue, is similar to the adjusted EBITDA margin of the other two SBUs, underlining the Staffing SBU's high productivity and profit generating capability.
Management System
Marketing Matching Technologies SBU's Business Model
Simplify Business Processes Through Platform Solutions
In Japan, Marketing Matching Technologies SBU offers one of the largest online matching platforms, as well as Software as a Service ("SaaS") solutions for business clients.
Marketing Matching Technologies SBU provides solutions which support business clients' operations such as customer acquisition, customer relationship management, and payments in a variety of industries, such as beauty, travel, dining, housing & real estate, and others. The pricing models for the marketing matching platforms are primarily advertising models while the pricing models for travel and other services are pay for performance models.
In addition, it offers cloud-based SaaS solutions that utilize technology and data to improve the efficiency of the day-to-day management and operations of clients' businesses. The pricing models for SaaS solutions are primarily subscription models and transaction-based models, while some services are provided for free.