Parker Young is 1.

Friday marked my 36th birthday. I genuinely feel old for the first time and feel the big 40 is in sight. I haven’t written this blog to tell you about my first visible grey hairs, constant bad back, utter lack of ability to drink or keep of the weight off like I used to though.

Friday also marked Parker Young’s first anniversary. This something I am proud of and in order to commemorate it, I thought I would write my first ever blog (on LinkedIn or any other medium)

To help put together my thoughts and reflections of a first year in business, I’ve collated a number of questions which have been asked throughout the year by candidates, clients, friends and family. These questions weren’t necessarily asked in the order I have order them in, but it helps to paint a picture.

Why did you set up Parker Young Recruitment?

When growing up, I was lucky to have witnessed a number of people who worked hard to grow successful businesses of their own including my dad, who left a role in the brewing industry, to pursue a career in telecoms, of which he had no prior knowledge or experience. After working his way up in large global businesses and with numerous restructures and moves along the way, he took the plunge and launched his own business. Nearly 30 years later, he still has that business employing some great people, some who have been with him all that time. Not only has this provided me with opportunity to see what taking a risk and working hard can bring, but it has offered me a business advisor who has been there and done that, should I need to call on him.

I have always had the desire to have something I could call mine and having been through a similar career path to my dad, albeit in a different industry, it gave me the drive, reassurance and support to do it.

Did you make the right decision?

On the day I launched Parker Young, I had a son who was 13 months old and while the overwhelming majority of people said: “good for you”, “I am really proud of you”, “what a great feeling you must have” and “I wish you all the best”, I also had the odd comment along the lines of: “wow! that’s a risk with a little one” or “do you think it’s the right time for you to launch a business?” I guess there will always be people who are risk averse and who wouldn’t do what I have done, but I have taken the risk and things are going the way I had hoped/ planned so far. Yes is the short answer.

I have read many books, industry articles and blogs just like this one, both in the years I was employed and over the last year. One of the most common statements is along the lines of “the only regret I have is not doing it sooner!” I don’t feel this way personally as without the decade in the industry and experiences in different sizes of business, privately owned and plc, I wouldn’t have learned what I have to mature in the industry and gain a clear view of the direction I want to take my business.

So a choosing my time was important, but it wasn’t because of the risks or the what if’s, it was making sure I was financially ready and experienced enough to do it.  

My son turns two in March and I have a second child on the way in June. I couldn’t be happier. I don’t see what I did when I did it any riskier than any other time.

What did you do before Parker Young?

Like many others in my profession, I didn’t leave university with the sole aim of securing a role in the recruitment industry, in fact it wasn’t even close to featuring in my “what to do next?” list.

Having studied sport science at University, I felt the next logical thing to do was to study for my PGCE to become a P.E. teacher. Whilst preparing for another year of “study”, I took a Summer job at a local student lettings agent. I loved it and happened to be quite good at it. It ignited a passion for sales and I knew it is what I wanted to do rather than teach. The Summer job turned out to be a 3? year Summer job and after 10 years away I was delighted to return six months ago to recruit a key role in their business!

Whilst working in the city lettings office, I showed a chap around a number of city centre apartments. He took one and in doing so offered me the opportunity to interview for a role in recruitment. He worked for a business I hadn’t heard of at the time, but who turned out to be a global FTSE 250 company and a huge part of my life for eight years.

I worked 50-60 hours a week, in an environment that couldn’t help but motivate and inspire me. I look back now and feel fortunate to have joined the business at a time other equally ambitious and like- minded people had, many of whom today have since launched very successful businesses. I also met some friends for life there, one ending up being my best man, I being his.

Then at a time I felt the recruitment landscape was changing and some smaller, well- run recruitment brands were taking market share and generally offering what was reported as a great service by candidates and clients, I decided to move a well-established privately owned competitor business with the full intention of being there for some time. After only a number of months there however, something happened….

The entrepreneur that lied dormant, was woken up when not one, but a couple of clients questioned why I hadn’t done the same as the owners of the business I was working for and left Plc life to launch my own business?

They had a point. I launched Parker Young.

What is different now you work for yourself?

This is quite a straight forward one to answer in many ways but it has taken a full year to really take stock of what the main differences are.

Other than the sense of truly running every aspect of a business including, recruiting, advertising, invoicing, chasing invoices, expenses, ordering stationery, submitting VAT returns and buying my own coffee, it is having the freedom to recruit for the businesses who I feel I am best matched to without having to consider geographical or ownership restraints. I have enjoyed choosing to work with businesses who have a genuine desire to work in partnership with their recruitment contacts and have felt empowered when walking away from other businesses who don’t.

I have also been able to select when I work rather than fix myself to core hours of the day. If I plan my week well, I exercise mid-morning on the days can and pick my son up from nursery as much as possible. This is then followed by work later the evening, time I used to be in the gym/ pub after finishing for the day. The message is essentially balance. As long as you have the discipline to work at unconventional times of the day in order to fit in the important things to you, then it can work and I certainly feel more productive that way.

I don’t miss my daily commute, Nescafe gold blend, junctions 21-17 of the M62 at 7am, “trap 6” and the person who microwaved their fish meals at lunch time, every office has that person.

I do miss having someone other than the wall to talk to at times, but I know this is a short term thing and it has made me incredibly productive!

Do you do anything differently to what you did before?

It has been a great experience to work with the various people who supported the setting up of the business including, brand/ logo and website development specialists. It was also great selecting my CRM system, accountant, solicitor and flexible office space. Once that was done however, the process of recruiting didn’t change and it shouldn’t have given I know what my clients expected.

It has been the biggest learning curve at times and I am grateful that technology is as good as it is for me to be able to do the job as effectively as in previous roles, but the basics remain the same. Find great candidates, find great businesses, put them together. Repeat. I try to follow the principles that are important to me (https://www.parkeryoungrecruitment.com/our-values/ ) and although it won’t always result in success, it has a good chance.

Do you work in your pyjamas now?

No.

Are you on the golf course all the time?

I wish.

Who is Parker?

It’s my mum’s maiden name and not some mystery dragon’s den investor or silent partner as some of you believed it to be. Sorry! I set the business up on my 35th birthday to make sure my 36th and every other one after that was memorable for the right reason and on the same theme, I chose my two family names in order to give me the extra impetus to make sure it was/is a success. I hope I have done the family proud so far.

What are you looking to do with the business?

A wise old Director from my first recruitment business taught me to “Just aim to be successful and everything else you want from your career will follow”. It was great advice, but when passing on this wisdom he probably had different expectations of the direction my career would take! That said, its advice which has stuck with me and I have applied it to my plans for Parker Young.

But what does a successful business look like? Should it have 100 fee earners, or should it be boutique with a small number of experienced sector specialists? Does it need to in best office in the best address, or can all colleagues work remotely? The answer is there isn’t one single answer and it’s the exciting part to how Parker Young will evolve.

I have never been so open to, prepared for and interested in exploring multiple options for the business including hiring new team members, tactical partnerships with other experienced recruiters who have networks that compliment mine and to offer people who haven’t yet taken the plunge a vehicle to be able to do so. There have been some exciting recent developments on this front and I will be delighted to announce them in due course….

If you have reached this part of the blog, firstly thank you and well done for sticking with it. Secondly, if you would be interested in a confidential conversation regarding any of the options above, feel free to contact me at either [email protected] or 0113 831 4455.

So I am 36 and 3 days old today and although age seems to be catching up on me, I am the happiest I have been in my career and home life and wouldn’t change a thing. What I would agree with in the books I read is “if you feel it’s the right thing to do and you trust yourself to make a success of it, then do it!” Life begins at 40 I have heard too so bring it on!