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Recruiting the right team

An overview of our recruitment services

We help aspirational businesses of all sizes, charities and not-for-profit entities as well as many individuals.

Through our highly collaborative and constructive approach, we engage with our clients to help them meet their challenges head on.

We aspire to be the very best at what we do and are committed to challenging ourselves, both individually and collectively. A willingness to invest, be it our time, in our people, in services or technology, is a defining characteristic of UNW.

UNW is a leading independent firm of chartered accountants that delivers a wide range of accountancy and business advisory services to its clients.

T E W+44 (0)191 243 6000 enquiries@unw.co.uk www.unw.co.uk

Having the right people in place is crucial to the efficient running and sustainable growth of an organisation.

Whether a hiring need arises due to a period of significant growth or investment, or you are simply looking to add certain skills or expertise to your team, UNW can help you source and attract suitable candidates, both regionally and nationally, to meet the specific challenges of your organisation.

Focusing on board level and senior finance recruitment, our team of specialist consultants take a collaborative approach and harness their extensive networks to ensure they connect the right people to the right roles across a range of sectors.

Recruiting the

right team

Our recent placements

Responsive Engineering

Managing Director

Bede Gaming Limited

Non-Executive Director

Standex Engineering Technologies Group

Operations Director

Helping Hands Community Care Limited

Managing Director

Children’s Heart Unit Fund (CHUF)

Trustees

Cussins Ltd

Finance Director

Quantum Pharma Plc

Chief Financial Officer

Bellway Plc

Head of RiskHead of Tax and Treasury

Vocare

Finance Director

Miller

Business Development Director

Samuel Knight International

Finance Director

Oil NRG

Finance Director

Northumberland Church of England

Academy Trust

Finance Director

NorthEdge Capital

Chair, Clearly DrinksChair, Total Fitness

Ramside Estates

Finance Director

Power Roll

Finance and Commercial Director

Halma Plc

Managing Director,Palintest Ltd

Age UK Northumberland

Head of Finance and Quality

Vaulkhard Group

Non-Executive Director

Peacocks Medical Group

Clinical DirectorManaging Director, Podfo Ltd

Vianet Group Plc

Business Development Director

NEPIA

Regulatory AccountantGroup Financial Controller

Drummond Central

Finance DirectorNon-Executive Director

Dame Allan’s Schools

Bursar

UNW IN THE COMMUNITY

SJOG appoints brand new executive team with help from UNWSJOG Hospitaller Services has enjoyed growth over the past nine months following the appointment of an entirely new executive team, in a search led by UNW’s Strategic Talent service.

PHOTO: (Standing L-R) Peter Neal (Head of Strategic Talent at UNW), Dr. Lisa Alcorn (COO at SJOG), Paul Bott (CEO at SJOG), (Sitting L-R) Leanne Welford (CFO at SJOG), Laura Dean (Strategic Talent Senior Manager at UNW)

FEATURED CASE STUDY

First established in the United Kingdom in 1880, the registered charity SJOG has grown from its North East base to offer support to those in need across 35 locations in the United Kingdom.

We recently sat down with Paul Bott, who joined the organisation as Chief Executive in October 2018, to discuss the work they do, his experience working with UNW, and how the new executive team have dealt with the challenges that they faced. When we spoke with him, the organisation was in the midst of a relocation to its new headquarters at Lingfield Point in Darlington.

When discussing the services that SJOG offer, Paul is particularly keen to point out the variety of support provided. He said, “We have a whole range of services across the country that support people with learning disabilities and complex physical impairments. It’s very skilled work with people that have high levels of need. We also provide support to the elderly, and are currently working with partners like the Salvation Army to deliver a number of services related to victims of human trafficking and modern-day slavery.”

Paul was appointed as Chief Executive of SJOG after a recruitment process led by UNW’s Strategic Talent team, a niche service specialising in board level and senior finance recruitment. “I initially became involved with Strategic Talent as a candidate,” he explains. “I established a relationship with both Peter Neal and Laura Dean, and found the entire process

to be very personal. They were very knowledgeable and kept me well informed throughout, and we had very frank conversations about what the challenges would be.”

Following his appointment, Paul worked closely with Strategic Talent to fill the remaining vacancies on SJOG’s executive team. “UNW completely understood what it was that we were looking for,” he comments. “They were fantastic at getting down to the core of what our challenges were, and encouraged us to reflect on our options. We wouldn’t have been able to access the wide range of credible and quality candidates we received without their skillset. We could have hired any of the candidates the team found us, but two particularly stood out as a great fit for the organisation.”

Leanne Welford and Dr Lisa Alcorn then joined as Chief Finance Officer and Chief Operating Officer, respectively. Paul observed, “I spoke with Leanne about UNW and we both had a similar experience. As a candidate, the level of communication we had with the Strategic Talent team was of a different calibre to what we received elsewhere. They’re very human, and they make you feel like you’re important to them, rather than that you’re just a number needed to fill a vacancy. There’s a huge art to that, in terms of recruitment.”

“Having the frank conversations about the issues that were affecting SJOG with Peter and Laura really helped us from the outset, because we knew what we were coming into,” Paul noted. “They helped recruit a team with clear strengths and a wide range of experience. Leanne previously worked for a private equity backed engineering firm, so was able to offer a level of rigour and reporting that was missing in the charity. Lisa brought an established track record in care and support in both charities and private sector organisations.

Paul is adamant that the recruitment process was not about filling vacancies, but finding candidates with the correct expertise to address the challenges facing the charity sector. Reflecting on the transparency of Strategic Talent’s

approach, he adds, “The three of us came in with a clear understanding of the issues, and that was really useful in dealing with them quickly. What we achieved in two years in my previous organisation, we have done in six months here. We’ve refocused, rebranded, and restructured the organisation. We have a good plan and good people delivering on it.”

“We’ve also organised our finance team and, through re-establishing relationships with the bank and amending our own reporting systems, have been able to address the financial challenges,” Paul noted. “For the first time in six years, SJOG is starting to make small surpluses, and we’ve achieved that in a relatively short space of time.”

Now that there is a clear strategy in place for SJOG, the team are looking to the future. On this subject, Paul said, “The quality of our services is continuously improving, and we’re now better able to evidence that quality. This is supported by the development of our culture, concentrating on our five core values through our ‘LOVED’ programme – Living Our Values Every Day. By really considering how we can better support our staff and helping them to develop their skills, they will be able to support those in need better.”

“Our mission is to effectively meet and address need where we find it, and we can’t do that alone so we’re continuing to build our partnerships and networks,” Paul commented. “We’re quite happy to work with people, or for people to get in touch with us, if they have any interests in the three main areas of work that we do: supporting older people, those with complex physical impairments, and people affected by human trafficking and modern-day slavery, which will be a huge area of growth for us.”

With the executive team in place for six months, Paul considered the benefits of outsourcing recruitment to the Strategic Talent team. He said, “As a charity, using the team was an important investment for us, and it was one that really paid off. I’m not convinced that we would have been able to hire the quality of candidates that we did if it wasn’t for Laura and Peter’s vast experience and large networks across the North East. Because of their consultancy, we now have really skilled people who have helped put together a great strategy, and are delivering on that at a fast pace. I’ve already had conversations with Peter and Laura about the opportunity to do more work in the future – not just on senior posts, but to our Trustee Board as well.”

UNW completely understood what it was that we were looking for. They were fantastic at getting down to the core of what our challenges were, and encouraged us to reflect on our options.

What our clients say about us

“We found the whole process to be great. The team are completely transparent; you can have completely honest conversations with them. The level of communication was fantastic as we were going through the different people that we interviewed. They interpreted exactly what it was we were looking for, which is exactly what the business needed to achieve the growth that we’re anticipating, and brought us the right candidates.

I think that the problem with many recruitment agencies is that they’ll just provide you with the CVs of the people that are on the market at that moment in time. We didn’t have that experience with the Strategic Talent team at all. We could tell they were focused on finding the right person, not just for the position but for the culture of our company, rather than just putting candidates in front of us.”

Chris ParkinChief Operating Officer at Miller

“UNW steered us through the recruitment for a senior finance staff member from start to finish. They were uncomplicated with fees and delivered the right candidates to choose from, so much so that a final decision was hard to make from the three excellent candidates available in the final interview. They supported us fantastically throughout, and gave their unbiased views and knowledge where required. The team’s management of the whole process was first class, and it saved us a lot of time.”

Steve RobinsonManaging Director at JT Dove

“Samuel Knight approached the Strategic Talent team at UNW to find them a Financial Director to join the business at a critical period of growth and investment. The team have an extensive knowledge of the finance sector, and were aware that my expertise in due diligence, setting businesses up, growing them, and preparing them for investment, was exactly what the business needed.

Having taken the time to get to know me and my aspirations, they also knew that I would share Steve’s (Group CEO of Samuel Knight) vision to grow a sustainable business of scale. My role in the business has since advanced, and I now head up global group finance operations, highlighting the level of growth the business has enjoyed.”

Carl MoffettGroup Chief Financial Officer at Samuel Knight International

“UNW’s Strategic Talent team is far more than simply a top senior recruiter in a highly regarded firm of business advisors, but an accomplished, genuine service that offers courteous advice. They really get to understand the needs of the businesses and the individuals they place. They were really transparent and honest with us throughout the process, and took the time to understand the Vianet culture and business plan. As a result, we were able to make what has proved to be a really successful appointment.”

Mark FosterChief Financial Officer at Vianet Group Plc

Meet the team.

Peter Neal +44 (0)191 243 6269Head of Strategic Talent peterneal@unw.co.uk

Peter joined UNW to develop the Strategic Talent advisory service in 2015, following 16 years as an executive search specialist at Nigel Wright Consultancy.

Utilising his carefully curated and extensive network and national search capability, Peter has built a strong reputation for helping organisations establish effective and successful leadership teams. With his expertise lying in board level recruitment – typically CEOs, COOs, Commercial Directors and NEDs – he connects businesses to the right people at the right time, enabling them to drive and sustain growth.

Alongside this, Peter is also a non-executive director at The Great North Air Ambulance Service.

Dave Bowman +44 (0)191 243 6270Strategic Talent Senior Manager davebowman@unw.co.uk

Dave joined UNW in 2015 to develop the Strategic Talent advisory service alongside Peter. He previously managed the finance recruitment team at Nigel Wright Consultancy, where he was responsible for senior finance appointments across the North East.

Prior to transitioning into recruitment, Dave spent a decade working as a chartered accountant within Deloitte. Alongside his over 16 years’ experience of senior finance recruitment, this has enabled him to build a strong network and gain a first-hand understanding of the skills and expertise necessary to succeed in senior finance roles.

In his current role at UNW, Dave makes use of this depth of knowledge to identify suitable talent for senior level finance positions across a broad range of clients, including PLCs, international groups, and owner-managed businesses.

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Laura Dean +44 (0)191 243 6266Strategic Talent Senior Manager lauradean@unw.co.uk

Laura joined UNW in 2016 from NRG, where she led and managed the finance recruitment team, and had personal responsibility for senior financial appointments. With over 10 years’ experience as a senior financial recruitment specialist in the North East, she has gained an extensive network and combines invaluable market knowledge with her vast experience of managing recruitment projects to help businesses create first class finance teams.

Focusing on financial recruitment, Laura utilises both her expertise and wide range of contacts to understand an organisation’s needs, deliver strategic advice, and source the right candidate to fill mid-level and senior positions for a variety of clients.

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T E W+44 (0)191 243 6000 enquiries@unw.co.uk www.unw.co.uk

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