Strategic Partner of the Year at Sainsbury's.
In front of 1,300+ attendees and with a record number of nominations, Sainsbury's named Cressoft its “Own It” Strategic Partner of the Year. The award recognised working closely and tirelessly to ensure quality and seamless progress, the highest standards, exceptional service, and strong human relationships. Our founder also received the Individual Partner award.
View original post on LinkedInExclusive nearshore technology partner for Sainsbury's and Holland & Barrett.
🏆 We are honoured to receive the Strategic Partner Award from Sainsbury's. Last week at Sainsbury's TechCon 2025, where over 1,300 attendees gathered, Cressoft was shortlisted alongside global giants like Microsoft and Accenture. We are proud to share that Cressoft was selected as the winner of the “Own It – Strategic Partner Award.”
The presenter described the winner as: “Receiving a record number of nominations, gaining recognition on all levels, working closely and tirelessly to ensure quality and seamless progress. They drive the highest standards, always deliver with exceptional service and a smile, and build strong human relationships along the way.”
This award is a reflection of our team's dedication, expertise, and our unwavering commitment to Sainsbury's. We are proud to be a trusted partner, delivering seamless solutions and world-class talent every single day. Here's to owning it, today and every day.
Trusted by teams that ship at scale
What we do
A consultancy built for engineering teams under delivery pressure
We are not a CV broker. We carry the screening bar ourselves, embed with your team, and stay accountable for the engagement long after the introduction.
Staff augmentation
Plug vetted individual contributors or small squads straight into your existing teams. Scale up in weeks, not quarters, without the overhead of permanent hiring.
Outcome-based delivery
We own the outcome, end to end. A Cressoft squad handles discovery, design, build, ship and hand over against an agreed scope, milestones and acceptance criteria, with day-to-day delivery managed by us.
Nearshore, time-zone aligned
High-performing consultants from Turkey and surrounding regions, working your hours. Full overlap for standups, pairing and real-time collaboration.
Screened before you see them
Every consultant clears a five-stage AI and human pipeline, adapted to their role family. You receive a complete candidate report, then interview only the people worth your time.
Breadth of roles
Backend, frontend, fullstack, AI and data, SDET, QA, DevOps, Platform, Solutions Architects, Engineering Managers, Delivery Managers and Product Managers.
Managed for the long run
Once placed, a dedicated Talent Manager owns onboarding, timesheets and continuous support. Most of our engagements extend well beyond their first term.
Roles we place
Whole teams, not just engineers
We staff the full delivery org: engineering, architecture, data, AI, platform, QA, product and delivery. Same screening rigour for every role family, adapted to what that role actually does.
Engineering
- • Backend (Java, Node, Python, Go, Scala, .NET)
- • Frontend (React, Next.js, Vue, Angular)
- • Fullstack
- • Mobile (iOS, Android, React Native)
- • Senior & staff engineers
- • Site reliability engineers
Architecture & Leadership
- • Solutions architects
- • Principal & tech leads
- • Engineering managers
- • Heads of engineering
Data & AI
- • Data engineers
- • Data scientists
- • AI / ML / LLM engineers
- • MLOps & model platform
- • Analytics engineers
Platform & DevOps
- • DevOps engineers
- • Cloud / platform engineers (AWS, GCP, Azure)
- • Kubernetes & Terraform specialists
- • Security & compliance
Quality & Test
- • SDETs / test engineers
- • QA leads
- • Performance & load testers
- • Automation specialists
Delivery & Product
- • Delivery managers
- • Project managers (Agile / SAFe)
- • Product managers
- • Scrum masters
- • Business analysts
The screening pipeline
Five stages of AI and human screening before you spend a minute
Most agencies forward CVs and hope. We run every consultant through a five-stage pipeline that compresses your interview time from around 2.5 hours per candidate to as little as 30 minutes, without lowering the bar. The stages adapt by role family: engineers and SDETs take the coding exercise, while product, delivery and engineering managers swap it for role-specific scenarios and structured interviews. Same rigour, applied to what the role actually does.
AI CV AnalysisAI
Every CV is parsed against the actual role spec and scored on skills, experience and location eligibility. Smart filtering with verified experience and link validation, so weak fits never reach a human reviewer.
Recruiter Tech CallHuman
A 25-minute live conversation with a Cressoft tech recruiter. We assess English fluency, communication style, motivation, availability, rate, and cultural and technical fit before anyone moves forward.
AI Video InterviewAI
Five pre-recorded video answers to job-specific technical and scenario questions. AI scores answer quality, English, authenticity and seniority. You watch the responses on your own time.
AI Coding Exercise & MCQsAI
Role-specific coding tasks and multiple-choice questions, reviewed for correctness, code quality, problem solving and technical depth. Full session playback plus integrity checks for session leaving, code copying, external paste and attempted searches.
Cressoft Whiteboard ScreeningAI + Human
An asynchronous system-design exercise with AI evaluation across four weighted pillars. Each evaluation also generates tailored follow-up questions for your live interview. We use a four-tier internal rubric and only forward candidates who land at Strong Hire or Lean Hire.
One report, not a CV
Everything your team needs to decide, in a single pack
For every engineer we present you receive one comprehensive Candidate Report: AI percentile breakdowns, a verified skills matrix, full coding-session playback with integrity flags, video interview responses, an English assessment, and a clear recommendation. We use a four-tier internal rubric to grade the pipeline; only candidates who land at Strong Hire or Lean Hire reach your inbox.
See how it works for clientsThe difference
Cressoft vs a traditional recruitment agency
| Traditional agency | Cressoft | |
|---|---|---|
| Screening before you see anyone | Forward the CV, hope for the best | Five-stage AI and human pipeline |
| What you receive per candidate | A CV and a phone-screen note | A full report: scores, code playback, video, recommendation |
| Technical assessment integrity | Unverified take-home or none | Full session playback with anti-cheat checks |
| Manager interview time | Around 2.5 hours per candidate | As little as 30 minutes |
| After placement | Margin collected, relationship ends | Dedicated Talent Manager for the engagement |
| Accountability | Replace and re-invoice | Long-term partnership, most engagements extend |
| Proof | Self-described | Strategic Partner of the Year, 4.8 on Clutch |
Why teams choose Cressoft
What makes us different from a recruitment agency
Award-winning, not self-declared
Sainsbury's named us Strategic Partner of the Year ahead of Microsoft and Accenture. The recognition came from the client, with a record number of nominations.
AI plus human, not either-or
Five screening stages combine AI scoring with real recruiter conversations. Speed from automation, judgement from people who have shipped software.
Integrity built into testing
Technical assessments flag session leaving, code copying, external paste and attempted searches, with full playback. You see how the work was actually done.
Manager time, protected
We absorb the technical and system-design screening so your interview load drops from around 2.5 hours per candidate to as little as 30 minutes.
Exclusive partner status
Exclusive nearshore technology partner for Sainsbury's and Holland & Barrett, two of the UK's largest retailers, plus high-growth clients across ecommerce, finance and AI.
Accountable after placement
A dedicated Talent Manager owns onboarding, timesheets and continuous support. We stay in the engagement, not just the introduction.
Led by engineers
A consultancy run by people who have shipped at scale
Cressoft is led by senior engineering leadership with a track record inside enterprise retail and global banking. That is why hiring managers trust the bar we set.
Built engineering at enterprise scale
Our leadership has built and led multiple engineering teams inside one of the UK's largest retailers, delivering the outcomes the business needed and adding significant value to every area they touched.
Delivered multi-million-dollar programmes
Hands-on technical leadership on a multi-million-dollar digital transformation at a global bank. Top-rated across the team, with a firm foundation of pragmatism and the ability to be visionary.
We build the tooling we sell
The five-stage screening pipeline, the candidate report and the integrity checks are our own engineering. We are practitioners running a consultancy, not a recruitment desk reselling CVs.
Success stories
Trusted by the people who manage our engineers
Feedback from engineering leaders, hiring managers and the consultants who deliver the work. Independently rated 4.8 out of 5 on Clutch, with a perfect willing-to-refer score.
“Cressoft built and led multiple engineering teams that delivered excellent solutions to the outcomes the business needed, adding significant value to the areas they worked in. I always knew I could rely on them to deliver what we needed.”
“Cressoft delivered on a multi-million-dollar digital transformation at HSBC. Highly respected across the team and top-rated: a firm foundation of pragmatism with the ability to be visionary. A true partner.”
“More than happy to have her as a permanent member of the team. Very pleased with her quality and velocity of work, communication and contribution to the fabric of the team.”
“I really like the interview process of Cressoft.”
“He's been exceptional from day one and the team genuinely don't want to lose him. We're really, really disappointed we can't keep him.”
“Smashing tickets and contributing significantly to team delivery on Argos Pass, with tight deadlines. Goes above and beyond expectations.”
“Hit the ground running and won the team's Product Ninja award for navigating complex tasks with confidence and clarity.”
“They immediately address all of our requests and needs and are always eager to step up to any challenge.”
“The hiring process at Cressoft is really fast and painless, and doesn't sacrifice the needs of the customer. They're agile in supporting talent and solving problems. Highly recommended.”
“One of the best companies I have worked with. Strong management, real support, and genuine engineering depth. Cressoft has good people all around the world.”
“They're nice and approachable. I found it easy to work with them. We'd like to work with them again as soon as we have other projects.”
By the numbers
Proof, not adjectives
For companies
Tell us the role. We screen, score and send a complete candidate report, then you interview only the strongest people. Talent Manager support included for the life of the engagement.
How we work with clientsFor engineers
Work with serious clients, fully remote, on transparent terms. One application, an honest process, and a dedicated Talent Manager once you are placed.
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