Kelly Appoints Joel Leege as President of Kelly SETT — Bringing Nearly Three Decades of Specialty Staffing, Managed Services, and Technology Solutions Leadership to Accelerate Profitable Growth Across Life Sciences, Engineering, Technology, and Telecom
Leege joins from Red Oak Technologies, where he served as President and COO delivering double-digit organic growth in technology services and talent solutions, and previously served as Chief Strategy Officer at Randstad Digital, leading growth initiatives that helped transform the business into a global technology services firm exceeding $3 billion in revenues — now tasked with capitalising on AI-driven demand across SETT's four specialist verticals.
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Kelly, a leading global specialty talent solutions provider, has appointed Joel Leege as President of Kelly Science, Engineering, Technology & Telecom (SETT), effective March 16, 2026. Leege joins Kelly's senior leadership team reporting directly to CEO Chris Layden, and will be responsible for accelerating profitable growth by building upon Kelly's specialty staffing and solutions capabilities across its four SETT verticals — life sciences, engineering, technology, and telecom. The appointment brings to the division an executive with nearly three decades of experience in specialty staffing, talent solutions, and managed services, and a documented track record of delivering above-market growth through operational transformation and disciplined execution.
A Career Built on Transforming Specialty Staffing Businesses at Scale
Leege's most recent role was President and Chief Operating Officer of Red Oak Technologies, where he led high-impact technology services and talent solutions delivery to customers across the US and globally, achieving double-digit organic growth and outperforming the market. Prior to Red Oak, he spent nearly seven years at Randstad Digital, first as Executive Vice President of Growth, Strategy, and Development, and later as Chief Strategy Officer. In that period, he led the implementation of organic and inorganic growth initiatives that helped transform the business into a global technology services firm with revenues exceeding $3 billion — a transformation that required coordinating strategic acquisitions, commercial restructuring, and capability expansion simultaneously at global scale.
Earlier in his career, Leege served as President at Prosum and Fahrenheit IT, and held positions of increasing leadership responsibility at Kforce — overseeing operations and driving sustained regional growth across multiple US markets. Together, this career arc spans every stage of specialty staffing career development: from regional operations leadership through national P&L accountability, strategic M&A, and global operating model transformation. Leege holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communication Studies from the University of Iowa, a Master's degree in Human Resources & Labor Relations from Michigan State University, and a Certificate in Mergers & Acquisitions from London Business School. He currently serves as Chair of the Board of Directors for TechServe Alliance and is a recognised industry speaker on staffing and solutions trends.
"Joel is a proven industry leader with deep operational expertise in specialty staffing and solutions, and a track record of driving above-market growth. His extensive experience building high-performing teams, leading complex transformations and integrations, and driving exceptional service delivery for customers is uniquely suited to further enhance SETT's competitive positioning and take the business to the next level."
— Chris Layden, CEO, Kelly
SETT's Market Position and the AI-Driven Opportunity Across Its Four Verticals
Kelly SETT operates across four specialised talent markets — life sciences, engineering, technology, and telecom — that are simultaneously experiencing elevated structural talent demand and rapid technology disruption. In life sciences, accelerating drug development timelines, post-pandemic investment in biotech infrastructure, and the expansion of cell and gene therapy require specialised talent pipelines that general staffing providers cannot reliably serve. In engineering and technology, AI adoption, digital transformation programmes, and infrastructure investment are creating sustained demand for technical talent with highly specific skill sets. In telecom, 5G deployment and network modernisation continue to drive project-based and permanent hiring needs at scale.
Leege's framing of the opportunity is explicitly AI-oriented: AI and the accelerating pace of innovation create new growth opportunities for a specialty staffing and solutions provider with SETT's scale and capabilities across these verticals. For a provider that can credibly serve clients navigating AI-driven workforce transformation — identifying the human talent needed to implement, manage, and operate AI-augmented environments across life sciences R&D, engineering automation, and enterprise technology — the current market environment represents an expansion opportunity, not just a competitive challenge. Leege's combination of M&A experience, technology services leadership, and above-market organic growth track record at Red Oak positions him to pursue both organic acceleration and strategic inorganic opportunities as the market evolves. More information is available at kellyservices.com.
"Kelly has an incredible brand as a specialty staffing and solutions leader which I am excited to build upon as President of SETT. SETT's scale and capabilities across life sciences, engineering, and technology provide a strong foundation as AI and the accelerating pace of innovation create new opportunities for Kelly to grow. I look forward to working with our talented team to capitalise on these opportunities and create value for our customers, talent, and for Kelly."
— Joel Leege, President, Kelly SETT
Key Takeaways
- Kelly has appointed Joel Leege as President of Kelly SETT, effective March 16, 2026 — tasked with accelerating profitable growth across the four specialist verticals of life sciences, engineering, technology, and telecom, reporting directly to CEO Chris Layden as a member of Kelly's senior leadership team
- Leege brings nearly three decades of specialty staffing, talent solutions, and managed services experience — most recently as President and COO of Red Oak Technologies delivering double-digit organic growth in technology services, and previously as Chief Strategy Officer at Randstad Digital, where he led the transformation of the business into a global technology services firm exceeding $3 billion in revenues through organic and inorganic growth initiatives
- Leege's career also includes the presidency of Prosum and Fahrenheit IT, and regional operations leadership at Kforce — spanning every stage of specialty staffing leadership from regional P&L accountability through global operating model transformation, M&A integration, and strategic capability expansion
- The four SETT verticals — life sciences, engineering, technology, and telecom — are all experiencing elevated structural talent demand driven by AI adoption, digital transformation, biotech investment, and 5G deployment, creating an expansion opportunity for a specialty provider with the scale and domain depth to serve clients navigating AI-driven workforce transformation
- Leege's M&A credentials from London Business School, his TechServe Alliance board chairmanship, and his explicit framing of AI-driven innovation as a new growth opportunity for SETT signal an appetite for both organic market acceleration and strategic inorganic investment — positioning the appointment as part of a broader growth mandate rather than a steady-state operational role