Softcat swells ranks as it forges ahead with Scotland plan

Glasgow office expected to open by the end of this calendar year

Softcat has welcomed dozens of new recruits as it finalises plans to set up camp in Scotland.

Some 56 new starters joined the reseller this week, taking its total headcount to 825.

About 45 of the newbies are graduates who will work in sales, five are techies and the rest will work in central functions. All the sales recruits will be charged with winning business with new customers.

The headcount boost comes as Softcat looks to step over the border to set up shop in Scotland. Plans to move north have been ongoing throughout the year, and Softcat's managing director Colin Brown said the new Glasgow hub should be open by the end of the year.

"We have got a number of Softcat personnel who want to go and we are currently interviewing for a manager for that office," he told CRN. "It's a work in progress."

He said the office will "almost definitely" be in Glasgow thanks to the city's emerging status as a financial services hub. Softcat partner HP has a base nearby and the city has received investment from Enterprise Scotland too, Brown said.

The new Scottish office will be the third new base Softcat has opened in about two years - it cut the ribbon on new facilities in Bristol and Leeds in the past 18 months, joining its existing offices in London, Manchester and Marlow.

Softcat chief executive Martin Hellawell said the 56 new staff is the company's biggest intake yet.

"A key ingredient of Softcat's development is constantly bringing in more talent to the organisation to drive our future growth," he said. "Finding the right kind of talent - bright, enthusiastic, passionate people with a great attitude and strong work ethic - is far from easy. We spend an inordinate amount of time on finding and recruiting that kind of talent. The work never stops, and we are now working hard on filling the next three intakes scheduled over the next six months."