Why franchise in Boston-Cambridge-Nashua?

Be part of New England's premier innovation ecosystem

With its rich historical heritage, world-class educational institutions, and cutting-edge innovation districts, the Boston-Cambridge-Nashua region offers an outstanding quality of life for residents. The area features iconic neighborhoods, vibrant cultural attractions, beautiful waterfronts, and extensive park systems. Home to professional sports teams, renowned museums, and a thriving culinary scene, this region balances New England tradition with global sophistication and technological advancement.

For business owners, the Boston-Cambridge-Nashua market presents a knowledge-driven economy with unparalleled access to talent and strong support for entrepreneurship. Organizations like the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce and the Cambridge Innovation Center actively promote business development, while the region's dense network of venture capital firms, incubators, and accelerators creates a fertile environment for growth. With over 100 colleges and universities producing highly qualified graduates, staffing franchisees have access to one of the most educated workforces in the nation.

Top employers in the Boston-Cambridge-Nashua region:

  • Massachusetts General Hospital & Partners Healthcare
  • Harvard University
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
  • Fidelity Investments
  • Boston Scientific
  • Raytheon Technologies
  • Liberty Mutual Insurance Group

Boston, MA Business Highlights

$2.8 billion estimated temp staffing payroll (2023)

$3.9 bilion estimated temp staffing market size (2023)

Ranked #1 in "Top Life Sciences Clusters" by JLL Research

2.7 million+ person workforce across the metropolitan area

100+ higher education institutions including Harvard and MIT

Home to Kendall Square, "the most innovative square mile on the planet"

Consistently ranked among the top regions for venture capital investment

About You

Who is an ideal Spherion Staffing franchise owner candidate?

What skills and traits does the ideal Spherion franchise candidate possess? After more than 65 years of franchising, here are the character traits, leadership skills, and business expertise we expect our franchise candidates to demonstrate:

  • Sufficient operating capital or the ability to obtain operating funds from a verifiable source
  • At least 5 years' experience leading and developing a team or teams in areas of:
    • Customer development, service and support
    • Sales and prospect identification and activities
    • Managing a P&L, basic accounting principals, accounts receivables management and delivery of compensation recommendations and guidance
  • Personal experience in sales and market development including new business prospecting, sales calling, consultative selling skills, business negotiation skills and responding to bid opportunities
  • At least 3 years' experience recruiting, hiring and developing team members to manage role-specific responsibilities and demonstrate criteria-based results
  • Personal residence within your desired market
  • A strong desire to contribute to your community; involvement in civic and community business organizations
  • Confident speaking and presentation skills

If this sounds like you, read more about franchising with Spherion Staffing. Then, contact Dan Brunell to get started on your Spherion path to franchise ownership!

Support & Training

Our support is our signature: Our owner community across the country is collaborative, supportive, and helpful. Spherion franchisees include multigenerational groups, husband-wife teams, former Spherion corporate employees, former franchise employees, and entrepreneurs from all walks of life. A clear supermajority (98%) agree that Spherion's training is good or better, while 100% agree that their fellow franchisees are supportive of each other and the Spherion brnad.**

You'll receive 380+ hours of comprehensive role-based training before and after opening. Periodic training addresses client development, legal requirements, marketing, and sales. You'll be supported by a dedicated portfolio leader who is available to answer questions and strategize with you, as well as by a national marketing team.

Spherion owners receive complete back office and technology support for all functions related to their temporary employees. We process employee payroll, including taxes, insurance, and benefits required by law. We invoice the clients, manage collections and application of payments as well as the W-2 process at the end of the year. Our corporate office maintains, supports, and troubleshoots all technology, eliminating the need for technical expertise and investment. Spherion's model allows you to focus on the business, not get lost in the business.

Our franchisees enjoy a full range of sales and marketing tools to help promote their business, including digital marketing, SEO & SEM support; sales collateral; print, radio, billboard, and online advertising; social media content; target account programs; direct mail campaigns; salary data; thought leadership research; and community giveback programs.

You'll enroll in our New Franchisee Launch program, a comprehensive training course that covers all aspects of opening a successful Spherion office. Plus, you'll receive ongoing support from a tenured team of professionals—from accounting, payroll, and technology to operations and marketing.

Competition

The Boston-Cambridge-Nashua staffing market includes both national and regional competitors, but significant opportunities exist for differentiation through industry specialization, technological sophistication, and personalized service. Spherion's combination of national resources with local ownership creates a compelling value proposition for both clients and candidates in this dynamic market.

With projected job growth exceeding national averages across multiple high-value sectors, the Boston-Cambridge-Nashua region represents a premier opportunity for a Spherion staffing franchise poised to capitalize on the area's unique workforce dynamics and specialized talent needs.

Staffing Industry Analysts predicts the US staffing industry will grow by 5% in 2025 to reach $198.3 billion. This growth will be powered by lower inflation and interest rates that allow businesses to accelerate their growth compared to previous years. Regardless of economic conditions, the need for temporary employees to fill skills gaps and for permanent workers to fulfill longer-term business goals will remain stable.

Growth & Expansion Opportunity

Talent Acquisition Challenges

Despite the region's educated workforce, employers consistently report difficulty filling specialized positions. A 2024 survey by the Massachusetts Business Roundtable found that 73% of employers identified talent acquisition as their most significant operational challenge. This talent gap creates prime opportunities for staffing agencies with expertise in specialized recruitment.

Flexible Work Arrangements

The Boston-Cambridge-Nashua region has embraced flexible and hybrid work models at higher rates than national averages. This shift has increased demand for contract and project-based professionals who can support distributed teams. Employers are increasingly turning to staffing agencies to manage these flexible workforce solutions.

Seasonal Workforce Fluctuations

The region's education-driven economy creates natural workforce fluctuations aligned with academic calendars. Additionally, the financial services sector experiences predictable busy periods around tax season and fiscal year transitions. These cyclical patterns create reliable demand for temporary staffing solutions.

Small and Mid-Size Business Growth

While major employers dominate headlines, the region has experienced significant growth in small and mid-size businesses, particularly in technology, professional services, and healthcare support. These growing companies often lack internal recruitment resources and rely heavily on staffing partners for their hiring needs.

Franchising Resources

Become a Spherion Business Owner.

When you're ready to start your franchising journey with Spherion, text, call, or email Dan to ask how you can become part of our franchise community.

Dan Brunell

Dan Brunell

Regional Vice President of Franchise Development

Dan’s background as a senior executive in the staffing industry and founder of a top franchise brokerage equips him with more than 30 years of experience helping prospective franchisees succeed.

This website and the franchise sales information on this website do not constitute an offer to sell a franchise. The offer of a franchise can only be made through the delivery of a franchise disclosure document. Certain states require that we register the franchise disclosure document in those states. The communications on this website are not directed by us to the residents of any of those states. Moreover, we will not offer or sell franchises in those states until we have registered the franchise (or obtained an applicable exemption from registration) and delivered the franchise disclosure document to the prospective franchisee in compliance with applicable law.

*This data is based on 67 franchisees that were open and operating their businesses for at least one full year as of 12/31/23. Of these 67 franchisees, 18 of them (26.9%) surpassed the average annual sales stated above, and 18 of them (26.9%) surpassed the average annual gross profit stated above. Some outlets have earned these amounts. Your individual results may differ. There is no assurance that you’ll earn as much. Please review Item 19 of our April 29, 2024 FDD for more information. 

**Franchise Business Review survey, December 2024