EMC – Enterprising Women Awards 2017 – THE WINNERS!

Our team at Astute enjoying the evening including our finalist Sarah-Louise Wykes

It was a great night at Colwick Hall celebrating the success of EMC – East Midlands Enterprising Women. Everyone who was recongised as a finalist are winners in their own right – including our very own Sarah-Louise Wykes who we are all really proud of.

The list of winners and their categories: –

Sharon Redrobe OBE & CEO of Twycross Zoo – East Midlands Zoological Society awarded Inspirational Woman of the Year.

Dr Redrobe was one of six women and a team presented with awards at the dinner. Six more and another team were highly commended. The awards recognise the achievements of women in business, many of whom have to balance running families and households to achieve their success.

The other winners included:

Business Woman of the Year – Suzanne Smith of Soteria Asbestos
Community Champion of the Year – Barbara Cathcart of Nottingham Hospitals Charity
Enterprising New Business Woman of the Year – Mital Thanki of Spark Academy
Team of the Year – Geldards Family Team
Female Employee of the Year – Min Rose, of The University of Nottingham

The event was co-Chaired by Jean Mountain, a Director and Immediate Past President of East Midlands Chamber (Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire), and Eileen Richards, business owner and former Chair of Integra for Women in Business in Leicestershire, which merged with Enterprising Women.

Eileen said: “We were very impressed with the quality of the applications this year and level of support for women in business.”

The gala dinner was hosted by freelance presenter Emma Jesson, who was GMTV’s first weathergirl, later working for ITV Central and ITV Granada.

Each of the awards was sponsored with the event’s headline sponsor, Cambridge & Counties Bank, coordinating a ‘Women in Business mentoring scheme’, which is supported by Enterprising Women.

Eleven mentees were shortlisted to take part in an assessment day. The successful mentees, which were also announced last night, were Amanda Overend of Books & Pieces, Jade Patel of Cambridge & Counties Bank, Neha Kadiwar of Hastings Direct, Sarah Wilkins of Lumbers and Lynsey Hyslop of The Rugby Players Association.

Jean, who launched Enterprising Women 20 years ago, said: “Congratulations to all the winners of this year’s Enterprising Women Awards. These awards are all about acknowledging and celebrating their achievements.

“There are some very talented and hard-working businesswomen in Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire who play a massive part in the success of their business but are often not recognised for their hard work and determination.

“These enterprising women make an important contribution to the local economy and their success stories will hopefully inspire other women to pursue their business dreams.”

Sarah-Louise Wykes Finalist of the EMC Enterprising Women of the Year awards – Female Employee Of The Year 2017

The team at Astute were thrilled for Sarah Stevenson and Mary Maguire to have received Highly Commended SME Emerging in 2016’s prestigious Forward Ladies Women In Business Awards (WIBA). The awards took place in Birmingham’s superb Regency Hyatt hotel last week in wonderful surroundings. It was a real honour for Sarah and Mary to have been part of an event hosted and presented by such a wonderful group of inspiring businesswomen across the Midlands Region. Here are some great pictures of the event including some very deserving winners.

The annual WIBA honour and recognise the pioneering women from enterprise and business across the UK. There are 4 regional heats and provide women a unique opportunity to acknowledge their success and become credible and inspirational role models for others.

The team here at Astute Recruitment are keeping their fingers crossed for Sarah and Mary attending as finalists of Forward Ladies National Women In Business Awards (WIBA). These awards are dedicated to recognising the achievements of leading women in business in the Midlands Region.

As one of the UK’s largest gatherings of businesswomen and leaders, this event is one of four regional heats from which the winners will be entered into the Forward Ladies Women in Business UK Final in Leeds on Thursday, 1st December 2016. The event itself is a celebratory lunch with business speakers of the highest calibre held in Birmingham City Centre at The Hyatt Regency Hotel.

We are keeping our fingers crossed for ourselves but also wish the very best of luck to all the deserved finalists in their categories!

Awards Date Is Extended

Article published by Dan Hayes

The Derbyshire Times Business Awards are almost upon us – and you now have even more time to enter your business for the high-profile prizes.

Due to the original date’s close proximity to the summer holidays – the deadline for entries has now been extended to Wednesday, September 21.The prestigious even – which aims to recognise and celebrate the very best in business and commerce across Chesterfield and the north Derbyshire area – will take place at Casa on Thursday, November 10.

Derbyshire Times editor, Phil Bramley, said: “Our awards ceremony is one of the highlights of the business calendar and attracts a wide range of entries from across al sectors from both small ad larger organisations.

“But the winners al have one thing in common – they are all truly excellent at what they do and have proved this by winning an award.

“If you want to follow in the footsteps of past winners, then now is the time to enter. Good luck everyone.”

Once again, the glittering black-tie evening will be hosted by Sam Orgrizovic – son of former Spireites ‘keeper Steve.

This year there are 15 categories, including Award: Hospitality, Leisure & Tourism and the Export and International Trade Award.

You can enter the awards on our website – Derbyshire-times.co.uk/businessawards – simply click on ‘Enter’ tab to pull up the form you need to fill out.

We wish you all good luck.

We recently held our first business breakfast event on strategies to win in business and what the world of sport can teach the world of business. It was a great success with over 50 business people including HR and finance professionals as well as business owners from the local Derby area attending. Everyone provided wonderful feedback on our very first quarterly event. We’d like to share below just a few of the super images from the morning.

All of the team here at Astute would like to thank Geldards and their marvellous marketing department for hosting the event, Shawn Ryder, photographer, and of course Neil Back, MBE and Damon Blakey of Fortius who were very generous with their time and shared some amazing (and funny) anecdotes from the world of sport!

We are looking forward to our next event on “Emotional Intelligence For Business Success“. Click the link to read more and confirm your attendance on 13th October.

Our successful year at Astute continues with us being named as 2016’s Best Small Business Recruitment Company by CV Magazine!

With a global network of 130,000 CEO’s, directors and other top-level decision makers, investors across the worlds of IT, training, manufacturing, marketing, design, retail and more, it is amazing for all of us here at Astute to have received this recognition as the best at what we do!

Below is the article which appeared in AI Global’s CV Magazine celebrating the crop of this years business award winners…

“From redundancy in 2009 Sarah Stevenson and Mary Maguire set up and established Astute Recruitment Ltd as a unique, multi-award winning accountancy recruitment business and brand. Regionally acknowledged as the expert in their sector, their core business is the recruitment of all levels of accountancy and finance professionals from ledger staff to Financial Directors.
Astute works across the East Midlands from their head office in Derby. Astute’s second office in Nottingham 2015 reflected a mounting demand from business owners and hiring managers for skilled accountancy professionals.
18 months ago after a period of record growth, Sarah & Mary appointed a Non-Executive Director to focus the business and establish firm strategic plans. This included a total re-brand with a new website, corporate logo, state of the art IT system, accounting software and transformational messaging. All of this has enabled the brand to reach a wider audience.
Astute were then able to promote and educate the wider business community about their story.
Astute Recruitment is a Midlands based recruitment firm specialising in supporting small businesses. We profile the firm and explore the secrets behind it’s success.
and the great services they offer. Astute and Sarah and Mary have been shortlisted for a number of awards, including Sarah being awarded SME Small Business Director of the Year at the 2015 Institute of Directors East Midlands Business Awards. Sarah was also awarded the coveted Entrepreneur of the Year award 2015, by the Derbyshire Times. 2016 followed this success with Astute being recognised at the ICAEW’s awards in March winning East Midlands Business of the Year and announced as finalists this year for the second year running for the national Women In Business Awards.
One of the hardest things to overcome for recruitment businesses is a lack of trust generally in the recruitment sector. Often Astute’s clients have never used a recruitment agency before or had a bad experience with an existing supplier that’s soured their view of what a recruiter can do.
To give those who have not worked with Astute before, they have created their “Triple Point Guarantee”. This gives new customers the confidence to try their services risk free, safe in the knowledge that in the unlikely event that the firm doesn’t manage to fill a position within an agreed timescale, Astute will pay £500!”

To view the full article in CV Magazine on all the winners please click here.

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.

Picture by: Shawn Ryan [email protected]

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.

Astute sponsors IoD’s SME Business Awards 2016

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.

Picture by: Shawn Ryan In photo: Mary Maguire of Astute and Don Hayes of Enable.

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”.

Rugby legend Neil Back will be asking Midlands businesses what they can learn from sporting success this month, during an exclusive breakfast event held and sponsored by Geldards at its Pride Park office in Derby on 29th June.

The event has been organised by specialist accountancy recruitment agency Astute Recruitment and aims to help local professionals to re-think their day-to-day approach to business.

During the breakfast event attendees will hear from Neil Back and co-director Damon Blakey of Fortius Broking as well as a representative of Geldards, who will be welcoming guests – sharing their experiences in both business and sport.
Mary Maguire, managing director of Astute Recruitment, said: “We are excited to be organising this event alongside Geldards, as it offers a great opportunity for our peers to learn more about business and sport from inspirational speakers.
“We are certain it will be an interesting morning and we hope everyone comes armed with questions for our expert speakers. We would like to thank Neil, Damon and Geldards in advance of the event – as we are delighted to have such a great panel”.

Breakfast will be served to attendees from 7.30am, with speakers commencing at 8.00am and the event closing at 9.15am.

A CELEBRATION event has been held in honour of the businesses nominated for the Derby Telegraph Business Awards.

Firms that have made the shortlist were last night given the chance to fete their success at a champagne reception evening at the Finesse Collection’s Cathedral Quarter Hotel, in St Mary’s Gate, Derby.

After weeks of poring over the entries, a shortlist of three finalists has been drawn up for each of the 13 categories.

Winners will be revealed at a gala awards ceremony at Derby College’s Roundhouse, on Pride Park, on June 9.

Last night’s event was thrown in the firms’ honour by Champions (UK) plc, which is staging the awards in partnership with the Derby Telegraph.

The finalists were welcomed to the venue by the Finesse Collection’s chief executive, James Blick.

The Cathedral Quarter Hotel, which is a historic Grade Two listed building, is one of the business awards’ key sponsors.

When it opened in 2008, following a £5 million refurbishment, it was Derby’s first independent boutique hotel and has received a number of high-profile guests – none more so than Her Majesty the Queen.

Today, it hosts meetings and conferences for a wide spectrum of Derby businesses and organisations.

Mr Blick said he was pleased to continue to support the Derby Telegraph Business Awards. He said: “It is only right to celebrate business success and this is the reason why we were keen to sponsor the awards.

“Derby has so many positives when it comes to doing business. It has excellent transport links, is centrally located and has the highest average salaries outside of London. It also has a strong leisure culture.

“These are just some of the reasons why major global brands have located to our thriving city.”

During last night’s event, the finalists had an opportunity to mingle with the sponsors, who have judged each category.

Several of the sponsors spoke on the night about how impressed they had been by the high standard of all the nominations.

The two headline sponsors of the awards are Derby College and Concur. The college is also sponsoring one of the most coveted awards – the Company of the Year category.

April Hayhurst, the college’s business development director, said: “Derby is the UK’s city of innovation and businesses today are continuing our proud heritage of breaking new ground across the industrial sectors and setting the bar high for the rest of the country to follow.

“The Derby Telegraph Business Awards are a vital part of that landscape. They celebrate success and encourage the whole business community to aim high.”

Derby Telegraph editor Neil White said: “It was great to see so many high-quality businesses come together at last night’s event.

“Looking ahead, the awards ceremony itself promises to be a fantastic event and a wonderful celebration of Derbyshire business excellence.”

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Mike

16:04 13 Mar 23

Highly recommended! Josh and Sarah have been fantastic at Astute. They've found and placed me in 2 jobs now between them, both really responsive and excellent at keeping you up to speed with things. Very knowledgable about the roles and happy to talk to companies with any queries you have.

C R.

10:45 27 Jan 23

Great agency one of the best ones I've worked with! Liz has been a great help and support in helping me towards a new direction in my career life. She is very attentive and keeps me in the loop at all times! She makes the extra effort to work with my preferred requirements for work and even if it isn't completely attainable she meets me in the middle and does as much as she can to help! Also Liz is very funny might I add 😂 and I'm happy that I can now put a face to the name after all these years! Thank you again Liz for all your help and support! 😊

Christine

10:32 20 Dec 22

Josh and the Astute team was very swift to help me to find roles that matched my profile. They are really reliable and will help through every step of the recruitment process going out of their way to assist and follow up when needed. Could not find a better recruitment agency!

Helen Pinegar

16:19 18 Dec 22

Fantastic recruitment agency.. Josh was extremely enthusiastic, encouraging and clearly knowledgeable about what was needed from both the employee and the employers point of view. Extremely supportive especially in regards to interview preparation and endeavoured to procure feedback promptly. Wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Astute in the future to both candidates and recruiting businesses particularly for the right fit for the role!!!

Lisa Leigh

11:56 30 Nov 22

I have worked as a candidate for Astute and they have been excellent. Super friendly service and professional agents keen to fit the right person to the right job. It has been a pleasure dealing with them and I would happily work for them again in the future. Highly recommend this agency.