A review of Think Specialist Recruitment's year by our Managing Director, Chris Jones.

2023 has been another successful year for Think Specialist Recruitment. We have managed to maintain the levels that we reached in 2022 and have had an equally busy and fruitful 12 months of trading which is amazing to say!

I firmly believe that our success can be attributed to two key things – our established and highly competent team coupled with the client relationships that we have both maintained and built across 2023.

As we did in 2022, 2023 started with a record-breaking January where we had our best ever month since the business started trading 12 years prior!  The fantastic start to 2023 continued and, despite some topsy-turvy market conditions we have remained busy for the majority of the year.

That does not mean it’s been easy! As every recruiting business will have experienced in the last 2-3 years, getting job offers across the line and candidates through the door for their start date has remained challenging. There are still plenty of opportunities available for high quality employees and businesses are still doing their best to keep hold of them!

Our team have worked tirelessly across the year to ensure that clients have been provided with high calibre candidates and that our candidates are introduced to fantastic Employers.  Our service levels are paramount to myself and the team, where we strive for excellence and look to build long-term, lasting relationships with those who require our assistance.

As I mentioned, our success is very much built on the experienced and competent team we have built here at Think. Lots of “Think-versaries” were reached and celebrated across 2023 - Kate (9 years), Alex (7 years), Bobby (6 years), Sophie and Michelle (5 years), Beth (4 years), Clare (3 years), Izzy (2 years) and Sophie F (1 year) – all have made valuable contributions.

When I started the business almost 13 years ago I hoped to build a motivated, committed and successful team and that is exactly what we have achieved.  Our reward menus, fantastic quarterly incentives, monthly commission and annual bonuses have created a close-knit, motivated and highly productive team that our clients and candidates reap the benefits of.                                                                                

At the end of the Summer we welcomed a new starter in Casey Bennett who has made an immediate impact and will be working with Clare Baker in our Accountancy & Finance division in 2024. On that note, Clare has maintained her successful growth of the division in 2023 and we look forward to that continuing next year.

Bobby, Beth, Izzy and Sophie C have all had an outstanding year, where targets have been surpassed and their hard work and perseverance have generated fantastic results for their clients and candidates.

At the end of September Beth Merralls received a well-deserved promotion following her consistent performance this year and is now a Senior Consultant – congrats to Beth!

Alex Montgomery commenced maternity leave in April and her second daughter was born in May.  That now makes 13 children, 5 cats and 6 dogs amongst the Think employees! We had another year of fun Quarterly Incentives with trips to the Gunpowder Plot immersive experience, VR darts, escape rooms, cooking classes, amazing meals and lots of drinks!

If you are excited about joining our close-knit and highly successful team, we are currently looking for a Trainee Consultant and would also be interested to hear from any experienced Recruiters who could be a great fit. Please contact me if you would like to hear more – [email protected]

We have been pleased to support the Pepper Foundation again this year, sponsoring their charity golf day at Berkhamsted Golf Club. Our donation meant that every penny received on the day went straight to supporting local children with life-limiting and life-threatening illnesses, with over £8,000 raised for this amazing charity! We look forward to sponsoring another golf day next year and welcoming some more clients.

Our 2023 Customer Satisfaction Survey has been undertaken where we ask for feedback from every candidate and client we have worked with across the year. The full survey will be published shortly but we were pleased with the results, in particular our clients giving us an average score of 9.1 out of 10 which I am very proud of. Far from being a vanity exercise, there has been some constructive feedback on how we can improve and some useful insights into how our service has been received. We look forward to working on these in 2024 as we continue to strive for excellence.

We have finished 2023 with vacancies still being registered and clients confident of hiring in the first half of 2024. However, there is caution from some who will look to back fill any leavers but otherwise have no plans for expansion in Q1.  With a pending general election and a volatile political landscape, both at home and internationally, I will keep my fingers crossed that the market remains steady in January and is buoyant again for us next year.  Hopefully the cost of living crisis eases for many and the conflicts currently occurring find a peaceful resolution.

I would like to say a HUGE “Thank You” to our loyal clients who have given us the opportunity to recruit for their businesses this year, and all of the committed and reliable candidates that we have placed into temporary or permanent assignments in 2023.

We are very fortunate to have some amazing relationships and connections who are always quick to help, recommend our services and pass business our way. It is VERY appreciated and means a lot to a small business like us!

Lastly my thanks and appreciation to my amazing wife and family who are always so supportive and keep me driven and focused.

Here’s hoping for a strong start to 2024 and thank you again for everyone that has contributed to another successful year for us in 2023!

Have a great Christmas and see you all in the New Year.

Kind regards,

Chris

Share