Stepping into the New Financial Year

As another financial year draws to a close and we embark on our 9^th year in business, it’s always a good time to reflect on the past 12 months and share with you our learns – the things that have gone well and the challenges we have encountered this year…

The good…

• Financial – Another record year for the business with Turnover and Gross Profit exceeding the budget that was set.
• Team – What can I say about the team, they have been exceptional again, with special mentions for Laura, Jade and Liv who delivered above expectations, well done all.
• Culture – This old girl just keeps on getting better, leading the way and directing our efforts. Our culture is who we are and what we do, and we live buy those rules.
• Wellbeing – We held our first people and culture day this year, and it was pleasing to see the team very happy with the work environment and the support we provide.
• Train, train and train again – The focus on our people and improving their skillsets is everything. Check out our google reviews, which says it all. If I do say so myself, they are pretty good.
• The Plan – We implemented our new, focused Strategic Plan with the help of Stuart Ross in April 2023, and all the objectives have been met. Thanks for your direction, Stuart.
• Client – These relationships just keep getting stronger, and most have developed to another level again. We now have clients that are personal friends – who knew that was even a thing?
• Candidates – When done correctly, a positive outcome of our job, is changing people’s lives for the better. We will have made nearly 200 permanent placements this year, which feels good.
• Networking – We have a good team, so let’s get them out and about. Networking has become integral to our growth as we became more visible in 2023/24. Long may this continue as it is the best part of our job.
• Charity – For the first time in our history, we focused our charity locally, and the link up with Base51 in Nottingham has been excellent, and the team have really enjoyed it.
• Systems – Investing in a new CRM, document management system and a new HR platform has been a game changer.
• Socials – We enjoy each other’s company, so these are never forced. From playing darts, to going out for food, it’s always a good crack.

The not so good…

• A couple of hires that didn’t fit our culture or style, slowed our growth down a little. We need to be more critical when bringing new people into the business, as everyone can talk the talk, but not everyone can do the walking bit. This will be an ongoing challenge that we need to work hard to improve.
• Toxic behaviours affecting the team has been a new one on me this year. Cutting this out has been integral to how we have gone forward. One apple can definitely spoil the barrel, so it’s important that you make the right decisions for the good of the group, not for the good of the bottom line.
• Construction main contractors going bust, doesn’t help attracting young people into the sector as it looks very volatile from the start.

When writing this blog, I was intrigued to see what the weighing would look like in respect of the positives or negatives, but it is clear the majority of things we can control, we do very well, but it’s mostly the things that are external to us that have been a challenge.

That said, we focus on controlling our controllables, creating an environment where all employees feel valued, and can achieve theirs and the business goals whilst enjoying what they do.  

Our values are very clear – Professional – Consultative – Specialist – Ethical – Team – and our culture is inclusive, with a focus on developing the people in our business to be the best versions of themselves. We have the kind of culture that checks in with each other weekly, we feel that is important to us.

We have a long-term plan for growth at Atkins Search, with lots of space for you to achieve your career goals. If you are looking for an opportunity and like what you have read, then get in touch with Antony. We are always looking for good people to join our business.