Gary Whittred ’s Success Story
Gary Whittred has spent the best part of the past three decades working within the recruitment sector and he has spent the last three years building his own recruitment business Jark (KL) ltd.
Gary’s business covers the industrial and permanent sectors across Norfolk and East Anglia and has gone from strength to strength over the past two years.
When asked about the reasons behind his success, Gary told us that continuity of staff was key and said one of the main reasons for Jark KL’s success was a highly motivated and dedicated team.
“I am very lucky, I have got a great team in the business and together we have been able to build something special,” Gary said.
“That hasn’t happened by chance though, I always say treat people how you wish to be treated and that’s exactly what I do with my team.
“I empower them to take control and give them the freedom they need to feel motivated, that makes a real difference.”
Throughout his career, Gary has learnt from some of the industry’s most successful leaders and he believes giving his staff an understanding of the numbers behind the business helps everyone to achieve more.
“It is easy to set people targets but unless they know why those targets exist and what they mean it is really just another number.
“By being transparent and giving my staff an understanding of the costs involved and the sales I need to generate to cover the costs of running a business they get a better understanding of the targets they are set and the reasons behind them.
“All the staff know what it costs me each week to run the business and because of that they understand what we need to bring in and the significant difference between net profit and gross profit.”
The recruitment sector is not always associated with long serving staff but Gary’s team have all been in the business a minimum of three years with many working with him for over a decade now.
Jark (KL) Ltd has an exceptional client retention rate and Gary believes continuity of staff is key to running a successful recruitment agency.
He said: “It’s the old classic that people buy from people but it is true.
“If I asked my clients about why they choose to work with us one of the main reasons for everyone would be continuity.
“They know they are going to be getting the same high level of service because they are dealing with the same person every time.
Any previous hesitations he may have had about starting a business were gone once he had the chance to talk through his plan with The Recruit Venture Group team.
“I am a salesman at heart,” he said. “I know that if I’m allowed to get out there into the marketplace and meet clients and candidates, then the money will come. That’s never been a worry to me.
“The Recruit Venture Group model meant that from day one me and my team were able to focus on the thing that was actually going to generate those profits, recruitment, and so we were able to establish the business very quickly.”
Dennis now has control to shape the business and its values and ultimately is building a legacy for the future.
“Those relationships between our clients and my staff are vital; they have allowed to operate with a really high client retention rate and build on existing business while bringing new clients on board.
“If I was constantly chopping and changing my team, I wouldn’t be able to offer that continuity to my clients and we wouldn’t have the long standing mutually successful relationships that we have.”
After two years of back-to-back growth in an uncertain market Gary is excited for what the future holds for Jark (KL) Ltd and is targeting maintain growth over the coming years.
“I see no reason why we can’t continue to grow, but we will do it our way,” he added.
“The priority for us is to maintain our high level of service to our existing clients, you want to keep the business that you have as a minimum every year and you do that by doing the best you can for your clients and being open and honest with them at all times.
“We have just launched a new executive appointments division, with a focus on permanent recruitment, with is a real grow opportunity for us and something we are pushing across Norfolk and Suffolk.
“We want to try and add some new clients to the list of people who have been working with us for a number of years now but we will be sticking to what we do best, I don’t want to grow by diluting our service level.”
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