Origins

Having worked in such a large corporate environment prior to establishing ALS, it was clear that very few recruitment agencies offered a genuinely specialist solution backed up with high levels of strategic account management and added value services. There was clearly an opportunity for growth in this sector as well as a burning desire from the directors to deliver on their strategic vision. Outside of the potential financial incentive for establishing a successful start-up, the pride in developing a brand, product and more importantly a talented team were critical factors to taking the “leap of faith” and leaving a secure and established business. Market exposure was difficult in the early stages and the firm had to adopt a ‘scatter gun’ approach to winning work to cover overhead costs. Outside of personal relationships, there was no brand per se so prospective customers had to trust in the individual that it could deliver what it was selling. As the service levels were strong, organic growth was a key factor in the first two years until it could establish some of the collateral marketing material and have a brand presence.

Success Factor

ALS prides itself on exemplary standards of service delivery to differentiate it from competition, having moved the model away from a traditional branch based recruitment offering where consultants are targeted to sell, focussing instead on the welfare of the workforce, providing a more ethical and hands on approach to staffing and ensuring customer satisfaction through service delivery. It has a clear understanding of its target customer, key performance indicators and success measures and actively identifies areas to continuously improve these. Finally, being confident in its offering and determined to succeed have helped catapult the business into the next phase of its growth plan

The Future

ALS will continue to expand its service offering to new and existing customers, identifying opportunities for organic growth with a predominantly blue-chip customer base. There is a clear opportunity for consolidation in the recruitment market, so acquisitions are being considered as an opportunity for further growth.