Monster.com parent’s profit surges 52% led by rise in headcount

Payroll services firm Quess Corp, the parent company of Monster reported a 52% increase in net profit in the June-ended quarter of FY23 compared to the year-ago period, aided by headcount addition.

Quess Corp's net profit rose to Rs 68 crore from Rs 45 crore in the same quarter last year. However, its net profit after tax fell 12% from the final quarter of FY22.

The payroll services firm’s consolidated revenue also rose 33% to Rs 3,979 crore last quarter driven by an increase in general staffing and growth in two of its units – QITS and ConneQt. Banking and financial services, retail and telecom segments were key business drivers in the last quarter, according to the company’s investor presentation.

“All our large businesses have continued to demonstrate exceptional growth, driving our consolidated revenues up,” Guruprasad Srinivasan, ED and Group CEO at Quess Corp, said in a media release.

However, the total expenses incurred by the company rose 35% year-on-year. The EBITDA margin declined by 106 basis points compared to last year due to increased cash burn, higher salary cost and an unprecedented contract re-negotiation.

ALSO READ

Ajit Isaac breaks down the organization structure and business model of Quess Corp

Quess Corp is a leading workforce management firm in India. It provides staffing and outsourcing services across verticals. Some of its biggest rivals include Naukri.com’s parent Info Edge, SIS and TeamLease.

The company noted that the job portal Monster.com’s six-month active user base grew nearly 17% to 17.1 million, compared to the previous quarter. Its other businesses including Qjobs, WorQ and DASH also reported an increase in their respective user bases. Qjobs, its blue-collar jobs vertical, listed over three million jobs and witnessed interest from over 4.9 million candidates in the last quarter.

“As we get into the festive season, usually the largest hiring season in India, we continue to invest in technology and have strengthened our business teams to take advantage of this opportunity,” Srinivasan noted.

(The story was updated to reflect that Quess Corp's profit growth was year-on-year.)