Resources Global eyes Chinese firms going global

 Resources Global Professionals, a professional services firm, is scouting for acquisitions in China, India and Germany, and sees Asia as its fastest growing market over the next five years, its CEO said.

The unit of Irvine, California-based Resources Connection Inc (RECN.O) assigns its 3,000 full-time consultants to work on clients' projects. The consultants are allowed flexible work schedules and many are paid by the hour.

Resources Global is benefiting from global demand for outsourced professional services by corporate clients including Chevron (CVX.N), Sony Corp (6758.T), Sotheby's (BID.N), Starbucks (SBUX.O) and Yum Brands Inc's (YUM.N) Taco Bell Corp.

More employers globally and in the United States are finding it tough to find skilled technicians, sales agents and engineers, according to ManpowerGroup (MAN.N).

"We want more critical mass for India and China because of the size of the market and the economic growth," CEO Donald Murray told Reuters.

"We currently see more upside in China from new emerging companies that are going global," he added.

The company used to get most of its work in China from multinationals operating there, but is now seeing big Chinese companies as clients, and expects this trend to continue.

The company, which is comfortable spending $100 million or more on an acquisition, is also looking at different types of professional services firms in India, such as in finance or IT.

"For the coming year (2011), we expect all our markets to keep growing and expect Asia to be our fastest growing market ... followed by North America and Europe," said Murray, who led a 1999 management buyout of the company from Deloitte & Touche LLP DLTE.UL.

"Significant" growth in Asia should drive the company's revenue and EBITDA, the CEO told Reuters over phone.

For fiscal 2010, Asia Pacific accounted for just 5 percent of total sales, while North America contributed 77 percent.

The company, valued at around $632 million, reported 2010 revenue of $499 million and last month opened its newest office, in the South Korean capital of Seoul. It expects to open an office in South America next year.

The company, which competes with Deloitte, KPMG KPMG.UL, Ernst and Young ERNY.UL and Accenture (ACN.N), is also eyeing tie-ups.

While its focus is on financial services, Resources Global sees healthcare in United States as a growth industry as it implements new systems to integrate medical records and billing, which should benefit the company.

Shares of Resources Connection, which last traded at $13.65, have slumped 38 percent since early January. Last August, the stock dropped to a 7-year low of $11.

By reuters