Month: July 2016

An Astute decision to recruit a non-executive director

Simon Gray writes…

Having previously worked in the recruitment industry for many years, I didn’t hesitate when Astute Recruitment approached me to help them refocus and reshape their business. Through Pembridge Gray Limited I work with a select group of clients as a non-executive director and business development trainer and was excited to get started in helping what was already a great business, become even better.

Sarah Stevenson and Mary Maguire, the founding directors, started their business in tough times. Recruitment is a challenging industry to be in and only the strong and equally determined survive. I was impressed by their energy and ambition, and since January 2015 have worked closely with them in what has become a very enjoyable journey.

I’ve always believed in keeping things simple. As Leonardo da Vinci said: ‘Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication’. This is a mantra I hold close at heart and for me, successful business is about positioning, promotion and performance. Unique positioning in the recruitment industry can be challenging. Working hard with the director team, we moved from a general offering to become a specialist SME financial recruitment business, recruiting solely for industry.

What’s more, Astute is the only recruitment business to offer a Triple – Point- Guarantee. If things go wrong, they work with their clients to fix the problem and will penalise themselves financially in the process. This boils down to confidence in the provision of a service second to none and gives comfort to businesses using the services of a recruitment company for the first time.

With a new website, social media channels and a business development strategy, which has nothing to do with selling, they’ve gained new regional recognition and picked up numerous awards. As an IoD member, I was keen to introduce the director team as new members and incredibly proud to see Sarah win in the category of Director of the Year (SME — Small) at the IoD Awards 2015. Further awards followed closely, including the ICAEW East Midlands Business of the Year.

I was thrilled to be ‘Highly Commended’ in the category of Non-Executive Director of the Year at the IoD Awards 2016. It was great to see Sarah presenting an award and Mary on the promotional film played at the start, showcasing last year’s awards. 

A recent event organised by Astute in collaboration with Geldards in Derby, saw former rugby player Neil Back MBE address an audience of 50-plus. Once again this is part of the new strategy to promote the business in the right way. On the performance front Mary and Sarah have invested heavily in training their team and developed a culture of learning and feedback. Every day is an opportunity to get better and to improve — the concept of knizen, which is something I saw on a daily basis while living and working in Japan, is very much alive. In my opinion the role of a non—executive director is to challenge, advise and to encourage the director team to step out of their comfort zone to think differently and constantly improve. I’m excited for the future and will continue to work with Astute Recruitment to help drive their next phase of growth.

Simon Gray FCA is a non-executive director, business development trainer and founder of Pembridge Gray Limited.

Simon Gray of Pembridge Gray Limited chatting with former international rugby star Neil Back, MBE at Astute Recruitment’s recent breakfast event.

Mary Maguire wrote:-

“Looking to grow our business to the next level, we appointed Simon Gray in January 2015 as a non-executive director. His expert knowledge across the accountancy recruitment sector across Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire is second to none, as is his proven knowledge of marketing, branding and positioning for SME businesses. The effective use of a non-executive director cannot be overstated. We’re now clear on our direction of travel, have a plan in place, and it’s helped encourage business owners like Sarah and l to run our business and not let the business run us! In a nutshell, that’s what working with Simon has meant to the business and the great team we have here at Astute.

 

 

IoD East Midlands Summer 2016 Magazine – Sarah Stevenson presenting Cuan Forrest of Ellipse Energy

Winner of IoD’s 2016 SME Business award which Sarah won last year and

Astute sponsored the award this year.

 

 

 

Accountancy recruitment agency Astute Recruitment has offered to help Nottingham-based charity Enable bolster its team.

Enable works to support voluntary and community focussed organisations in the East Midlands, providing advice and support in terms of economic development, learning, skills and employment.

Mary Maguire, director at Astute Recruitment, which has offices in Derby and Nottingham, felt compelled to help Enable grow its team when she visited the organisation’s offices.
She said: “At Astute Recruitment we recognise the importance of finding the best candidates possible, helping to grow and enhance your existing workforce. When I met with Enable’s chief executive Don Hayes, I was blown away by Enable’s amazing work across the region and the service it offers to other charities.

“When I spoke with Don, he mentioned that Enable was currently searching for non-executive trustees but had been struggling to find the right fit. Almost immediately, I knew we could help, especially in terms of accountancy candidates. Once a year we try to carry out one piece of pro bono work for local charities and I am delighted that we helped Enable recruit not one, but two new non-executive directors: Alan Bunn and Nikki Hufton”.

Thanks to Astute Recruitment’s support Enable has now appointed Alan Bunn as its non-executive finance director and Nikki Hufton as its non-executive HR director.
Don Hayes said: “I was taken aback when I met with Mary, who approached us to find out more about what we do and how we work. I mentioned in passing that we were looking for volunteers to help fill the skills gap on our board of directors, but I never dreamt for a moment she would find a group of suitable candidates for us.

“We are delighted to have Alan and Nikki on our board, they have made a huge difference to our day-to-day activity and made a positive impact. We are so grateful to Astute Recruitment for helping us find Alan and Nikki and we would recommend Astute to anyone looking to fill a skilled accountancy role”.

Enable works to support individual small local charities and voluntary organisations in the East Midlands to access government funding for learning and skills programmes and to more effectively meet the learning and skills needs of individuals within their communities.

Hayes added: “Before I met with Mary we had looked to recruit new board members through traditional avenues; advertising in financial magazines, word of mouth and advertising to specific organisations – none of which were successful. It is so important for us to have a strong board of directors as we support other organisations in bolstering their skills and teams”.