A lower risk way to reap the freddom and rewards of self-employment
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A personal case study from Beechbrook Consulting MD, Paul Eyton-Jones

  • After graduating in 1986 I spent 12 successful years working for blue chip multinationals in senior sales and marketing roles. I say 'successful', because I worked incredibly hard, was relatively well paid and frequently promoted.
  • In truth I was unsuccessful. Politics and irrelevant meetings sapped my energy, as did the commute home at the end of a long day. My poor family saw me at my worst, if they saw me at all. Although I was well paid compared to others, once the mortgage and bills were settled there wasn't enough left to support the lifestyle we really wanted. I couldn't see a way to change things. "Be patient" my boss advised me, "You're very well thought of and it will all come to you in the end", but I didn't want to waste my life waiting.
  • I had often thought about running my own business but I was put off by the financial risks and by the assumption that I would have to work 7 days a week. So when I saw an opportunity to be self-employed, with relatively low risk and sensible hours, I grabbed it with both hands.
  • Let me explain. I had always struggled to find good people whether I used advertisements, agencies or head-hunters: in one way or another they all let me down. I hate to think how much time I wasted.
  • One fateful day, I turned in desperation to a friend who, as a self-employed head-hunter, promised solutions. Were it not for our friendship I would have been sceptical, since I am cautious by nature.
  • I was right to trust him though: the quality of his process and the calibre of his people were significantly better.
  • In fact, so impressed was I (and knowing that head-hunting businesses were simple to operate and easy to set up), I asked him to train me in return for a percentage of any fees I billed in my first 2 years.
  • In January 1999, with the support of my wife Hazel, and equipped with just 2 telephones, a PC, and a filing cabinet, I launched a head-hunting company from my spare bedroom.
  • In addition I was armed with 6 ingredients for success:
    • a sound commercial understanding
    • good people and relationship building skills
    • strong communication abilities
    • a determination that I would provide my clients with the best possible service
    • specific industry knowledge (of the automotive sector)
    • a supportive family
  • I won my first assignment 6 weeks later in February and my second in March. I worked single-mindedly until November by which time I had made a gross profit of £185,000 (or £244,000 in today's money). The recruitment market seemed to go to sleep in December so I took the final month off.
  • Without the commute to work, my working hours were now shorter than they had been as an employee. Because I was in control of my life my stress levels were lower and I had energy to exercise and enjoy life more. I became a husband and father again.
  • After that first year I stopped selling my services because I always had too much work. All my assignments came from just 3 sources:
    • Client repeat business
    • New business from candidates whom I had head-hunted
    • New business from HR Managers in my clients, who had subsequently moved to new companies.
  • In the second year I moved into premises. Even though the recruitment market slowed slightly and I worked less hard than my first year, profits topped £300,000 in today's money.
  • My clients were all blue chip multi-nationals in the automotive and financial services sectors. They included Audi, Honda, BMW, Volkswagen and the leasing divisions of Hitachi Capital, National Australia Bank and RBOS. In 7 years I never lost a single one.
  • In my third year I hired my first member of staff, to concentrate on the utilities sector. He won a range of clients including Severn Trent, Thames Water, Total and Npower. In spite of this we made the same profit as the previous year because my productivity dropped now that I was also training, managing and paying for larger premises.
  • I faced a choice: if I were to spend half my time training and managing, I calculated that I needed to employ 3 recruiters to maintain profits. With 4 or more employees I would be able to raise profits to higher levels.
  • Alternatively I could revert to having no staff, maintain a consistent profit level and take the benefits in working progressively less hard as my candidate database expanded and saved me time.
  • Since my prime motivation in working for myself was quality of life rather than income maximisation, I chose the second route. So when my last employee left in 2002 (to set up his own head-hunting business with my help) I didn't replace him.
  • In 2004, my final year, even though I was working a 3 day week, annual profits were running at £178,000 (£193,000 in today's money).
  • I was able to operate this efficiently thanks to a loyal client base (I never had to spend time selling my services) and the comprehensive candidate database I had been accumulating since 1999, which effectively halved the work required.
  • Having saved most of our profits between 1999 and 2004, without realising it, my wife Hazel and I had become financially independent. So we retired on my 40th birthday in August 2004.

Why I came back to work in 2006

  • I enjoyed head-hunting but I enjoyed not working even more. During 2004 and 2005 I wrote a book and Hazel and I travelled as extensively as our family responsibilities would allow.
  • Were there just the two of us to consider, we would spend all our time travelling, but for the next few years our prime responsibility is to provide a stable home for our two children.
  • I could fill my days shopping, reading and watching television, but this holds no appeal because my passion is coaching people and seeing them grow.
  • So in 2006 after training with 2 of the UK's top coaches, Curly Martin and Chris Smith, I launched a coaching practice. Now I get my satisfaction from working with people to enhance their performance and bring positive change into their lives.
  • I have no desire to be a head-hunter again because I already have the benefits that it brings. But I remain indebted to head-hunting for what it has given me: financial security; a great work/life balance; more free time and personal fulfilment.
  • My enthusiasm for my recruitment format remains undimmed and I think it would be wrong to keep this knowledge to myself. So one of the most enjoyable things I can do with my time is to coach a very small number of people to become head-hunters themselves, in order that they can shape lifestyles that most people only dream of.
  • Additionally, through them my work indirectly benefits hundreds, or even thousands, of successful candidates and their families.

 
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