A good place to start is to say how proud myself and the rest of the BB Team are for being listed in The Sunday Times Best place to Work 2024! Reflecting from where it all started 9 years ago, working from a home office, cafés and hotel lobbies to now having 8 offices (soon to be 9 – watch this space!) across the UK, partnering with some of the best-known brands and some amazing SMEs and with so many fantastic candidates, it’s crazy to think that we have achieved so much to this point, yet it feels like we are only just getting started!
We have recently announced the appointment of our new UK Managing Director, Janine Blacksley, who we are thrilled to have as part of the BB family. Janine has a wealth of experience and is tasked with working with the whole business to help continue our strategic growth over the next 3–5 years.
We also now have a Bot!! called Wally Buchanan who is supporting us managing data and efficiencies for the team. This is all part of our key strategies for 2024 that is focussed on becoming a data driven business. We had a great away day for the whole business at the Belfry in April to focus on the business strategy and to ensure that everyone was feeling supported and engaged. It was great to see how engaged and proud they are to be part of Broster Buchanan.
The Women in…Podcast launched the 3rd Season last week, with some great guests and insights. If you haven’t had a chance to listen, please feel free to take a look
2024 so far… We have had a positive Q1 and the start of Q2 has continued to see the same. The news last week that we are officially out of the recession is fantastic to hear, and we will hopefully see increasing confidence coming back into the market. I am having several positive conversations with clients who are looking to kick off ERP projects and seem to have a positive but cautious outlook for the rest of 2024.
I am still pushing hard with my fitness; it really has now become a lifestyle to the extent that I feel guilty if I miss more than 1-2 days (Some may classify this as being somewhat obsessive!) but I get so much pleasure from seeing the results of all the hard work. Keeping fit and clean has become a pillar in my life and has had a massive positive impact on my mental health, helping me focus on the important things in life.
I have also noticed it’s rubbing off on my kids, they have started asking questions about the importance of keeping fit and eating the right foods. My oldest son (8) has gone to the extent of building his own ‘home gym’ in his room, using books for dumbbells and the edge of the bed for sit-ups! Whilst declaring he wants big muscles when he’s older! 😊 However, this seems to go out of the window when ice creams and chocolate come into play at weekends!
I am a great believer that your kids will pick up the habits we as parents show daily and both my wife and I feel a responsibility to create an environment that encourages working hard, and healthy living, both for physical fitness and mental health.
As it is Mental Health Week, I thought I would reference this from a previous blog I did back in 2023 around what I really want to change in my life, by asking myself a simple question Do I want to do this? YES or no. by asking this simple question, it reveals if you do want to make a change or not. If anybody reading this blog needs that kick, I highly recommend listening to this podcast about making and breaking habits:
