It's counter-intuitive to find that one of the most constructive
lessons from a business programme is to consider firing yourself -
but it really concentrated the mind on our future growth strategy
and the need to manage the business, rather than just "doing the
doing".
Iconic Resourcing was just about to celebrate its first birthday
when lockdown came and the 2 professionals we had only recently
hired were furloughed. So, we jumped at the chance to join the
Women-Led Accelerator for female entrepreneurs, provided through
Glasgow City Council's Business Growth Programme*.
The intensive programme was specifically designed to help female
business leaders navigate an altered business landscape, during and
after the pandemic.
We were already sure of our strengths; delivering a highly
professional recruitment service for HR, Accountancy and Finance
staff, backed by genuine determination to combine technology and
human interaction more effectively. Like everyone else however, we
were facing an uncertain future, thanks to the pandemic.
Over the four months of the Accelerator, we were exposed to the
challenges and strategies of many other businesses and sectors, as
well as the expertise of a diverse band of experts in their
respective fields.
A mixture of group and 1:1 sessions each week forced us to think
through and beyond the pandemic, to what would really differentiate
Iconic Resourcing as a recruiter in the busy Professional Services
sector. The course offered an opportunity to step back and evaluate
our ambitions and delivery model; metaphorically "firing" ourselves
as resource specialists to better utilise our time as business
managers.
Despite the relative youth of the company, (established in April
2019), we have further evolved our strategy of helping retained
clients to define their corporate story and attract a wider array
of candidates as a result.
We also turned adversity into advantage by making a strength out
of video for both CVs and interviews. Video both reduces the time
to hire and increases the geographic pool of candidates. Clients
also love being able to find out more about a candidate than a
paper CV could ever deliver, increasing our candidates' success
rates.
As a result, our confidence remains high. So much so that we
have taken on several exciting new clients and are just about to
hire four, additional team members through the Kickstart programme
and a further two independently.
If you ask me, no development programme is ever wasted and the
Women-Led Accelerator encouraged us to see a period of uncertainty
as a genuine opportunity to pivot and adapt.
*The Women-Led Accelerator programme for female
entrepreneurs ran over four months in spring 2021. It was part of
Glasgow City Council's Business Growth Programme; funded by the
European Regional Development Fund and delivered by LESL.
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