# Drake International

> Drake International is a privately held Canadian workforce company that began as an outsourced-work processor in Winnipeg in 1951 and grew into a global mix of flexible staffing, permanent recruitment, assessments, training, HR advice, certification, wellbeing, healthcare, and business-process services. Its commercial trick is to serve both sides of employment without charging job seekers: employers pay for placements, payroll and workforce services, while Drake recruits, screens, assesses, onboards and often employs temporary workers. In 2026, the company marked 75 years by acquiring youth-workforce social enterprise The Whiteboard Collective, pledging CAD $1 million with the University of Manitoba, and launching an annual Force for Good Day.

- **Founded:** 1951
- **Headquarters:** Toronto, Canada
- **Founders:** Robert William “Bill” Pollock (Co-founder and longtime Chairman), Jim Shore (Co-founder)
- **Team size:** Approximately 2,500 supplied; LinkedIn classifies the company as 1,001-5,000 employees and displayed 1,191 member profiles in August 2026.
- **Products:** Flexible and Temporary Staffing, Permanent Recruitment, Temp-to-Perm, Drake P3, DrakeWize Skills Testing
- **Notable:** Founded in Winnipeg in 1951 and expanded from outsourced processing into temporary staffing in 1952., Opened offices in Toronto, Montreal and Cleveland by 1957, beginning decades of international expansion., Built a workforce group operating in more than 14 countries with partner relationships across 128 more.

## Products & services

- **Flexible and Temporary Staffing** — Recruiting, screening, onboarding, employing and paying workers for seasonal, project-based, leave-cover and other variable needs.
- **Permanent Recruitment** — End-to-end search and selection for entry-level through senior roles, invoiced to the employer after placement.
- **Temp-to-Perm** — Temporary placements that can convert to direct employment after the employer evaluates performance and fit.
- **Drake P3** — A web-based behavioural and personality assessment used for selection, management, motivation and retention; Drake says more than 580,000 people have used it.
- **DrakeWize Skills Testing** — Web-based testing across more than 100 Windows and 50 Mac applications for hiring and development decisions.
- **Talent Management Solutions** — Hiring-process consulting, targeted recruitment, background checks, payroll, engagement and exit surveys, 360 assessments, training and performance tools.
- **HR Advice-on-Demand** — Fixed-time packages and monthly subscriptions for operational HR guidance and CHRO-level advice.
- **Kryterion** — SaaS testing, credentialing and assessment delivery through a partner network spanning 140 countries.
- **Drake WellbeingHub** — Employee assistance, counselling, critical-incident and workplace wellbeing support.
- **Drake Business Services Asia** — Outsourced operations, digitization and on-site business services designed to improve efficiency and lower costs.
- **Drake HR Analytics** — Workforce data analytics for HR insight and decision-making.
- **Drake Force for Good** — Education-to-employment pathways, including The Whiteboard Collective and an annual global day of community action.

## Achievements

- Founded in Winnipeg in 1951 and expanded from outsourced processing into temporary staffing in 1952.
- Opened offices in Toronto, Montreal and Cleveland by 1957, beginning decades of international expansion.
- Built a workforce group operating in more than 14 countries with partner relationships across 128 more.
- Drake says its P3 behavioural assessment has been used by more than 580,000 people globally.
- Created a portfolio spanning staffing, assessment, certification, training, HR analytics, wellbeing, healthcare education and outsourced operations.
- Marked its 75th anniversary in 2026 with a youth-workforce acquisition and CAD $1 million University of Manitoba pledge.
- Founder Bill Pollock received the University of Manitoba Distinguished Alumni Award in 1999 and helped expand the Young Presidents’ Organization internationally.
- Drake reports that nearly 80% of its global leadership team are women.

## Latest updates

- **2026-07** — Founder Robert William “Bill” Pollock died in Monaco at age 97; Drake published a memorial recounting his business and civic legacy.
- **2026-06** — Drake celebrated its 75th anniversary and launched Drake Force for Good Day, an annual global day of purpose and action.
- **2026-06** — The company acquired Toronto workforce-readiness social enterprise The Whiteboard Collective; financial terms were not disclosed.
- **2026-06** — Drake announced a CAD $1 million commitment and expanded partnership with the University of Manitoba to connect education with employment pathways.
- **2026** — Karen Meredith Blott serves as Global CEO under a Board of Trustees overseeing strategic direction, succession and global operations.

## Links

- Website: https://drakeintl.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/drake-international/
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/DrakeIntl
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/DrakeInternational
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DrakeInternational

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/drake-international
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-08-24