Mark Group and Hudson Case Study

The Mark Group is one of the UK’s leading domestic energy solutions businesses, based in Leicestershire but with a UK wide operation they are responsible for integrating cost saving solutions to over 4,000 homes per week in the UK with product ranges from insulation, through to solar energy and wind turbines.

The company is going through a massive growth phase in particular within its sales force and has teamed up with S2B and Hudson to provide an innovative recruitment solution to fulfil its ambitious growth plans.

Bill Rumble, Commercial Director, at the Mark Group described his thoughts on the recruitment project:

“We have been very pleased with the first phase of new employees sourced through S2B and Hudson, with particular reference to the sports guys that have now started in the business; they have demonstrated just the right sort of attitude and drive that we are looking for and we have expectations that a number of them will progress into more senior roles over the coming months. The high standard of applicant that has gone through our assessment process had been particularly pleasing with the S2B candidates performing very well.”

We will keep you updated on the progress of the Mark Group project. Should you like more information about roles and careers within the business, please contact us; there are assessment centres taking place across the UK on a weekly basis. For further information, please click here

Billy Fulton joins ISG

Sport2Business really helped give me the confidence to market myself to prospective employers and prepare myself for interviews. They were quickly able to make proactive introductions on my behalf. ISG have really impressed me with their training and career opportunities, and I have warmed to the people and their values as a business. They also believe in my potential. Without the introduction, I would not have thought of either ISG or building services OR project management. Now I have a great career to look forward to with an employer that positively encourages me to still play competitive sport while I am fit enough. I look forward to rewarding their faith and I start next week as an assistant project manager!

Billy recently received the dreaded news that injury had forced him out of the game. After a successful and international rugby career with Harlequins, Northampton Saints and Auckland, he suddenly had to re-think his career. He attended one of the work experience days at ISG plc, one of our corporate partners, on the recommendation of Simon Smith.

Billy summarised, ‘I was really low. The game I loved was no longer an option. When the ISG invitation came through, I thought ‘why not?’ I had really enjoyed the work experience in construction during my time in New Zealand. The work experience day was professionally run by ISG and Sport2Business; I met fellow rugby and cricket professionals and a variety of ISG personnel, both in head office and on site. Of most benefit was the site visit where I was really impressed by the professionalism of the project management. ISG were sufficiently impressed to ask me for an interview and within a week, I had been through a thorough interview process and was offered the role of Assistant Construction Manager. I was lucky enough to have offers in the City but with the training given, the international nature of the business and the option to work in New Zealand in the future, I decided to go with ISG plc.’

So what did ISG think?
‘We have been partnering S2B for a while and we have several existing, competing elite sports stars beginning to work with us. Billy immediately impressed us with his transferable people skills, his enthusiasm and he already had some relevant work experience. We believe we can offer him an excellent career.’

Darren Cousins Joins Coca-Cola Enterprises

Ex Northants and Essex cricketer, Darren Cousins has had some challenges in recent years since retiring through injury after more than a decade at the top level in cricket. We met Darren seeking a new opportunity a couple of months ago and helped him network into our corporate partners. We are delighted to report that he has accepted a role with Coca-Cola Enterprises, but even more impressive was that he received five job offers to consider. Darren recently commented, ‘I have been on a rollercoaster over the last few months. Sport2Business have really helped with proactive introductions but more important has been the practical support to prepare for interviews and with decision making. I really see the opportunity to build a career with an employer of choice like Coca-Cola Enterprises and it is comforting to know that they value the transferable skills that helped me succeed in professional sport.’

‘I totally relate to Darren’s journey and like me, he is starting a new career with Coca-Cola Enterprises relatively late in life. I am confident his drive and commitment supported by our training will see him achieve great results. We are very pleased to have him on board and we are enjoying having increased numbers of ex and existing elite athletes in our organisation thanks to Sport2Business.’ Daryl Jelinek, Regional Director, Coca-Cola Enterprises.

John Wood - Former Cricketer joins Michael Page

‘Going through the Career Coaching Programme has given me confidence and helped me to prepare for interviews to make the most of the opportunities made available to me by Sport2Business.  Every contact I have had within the business has been extremely helpful and professional.’

Martin Corry joins RBS

Once I had developed a substantially better understanding of what opportunities might be available to me, the Sport2Business contact network proved invaluable in introducing me to an organisation where I can gain some first hand experience of business, whilst still playing rugby at the highest level.”

Simon Miall Embarks on a Career with UBS

Former Harlequins and Oxford University forward Simon Miall has recently secured a role with UBS Wealth Management. He retired from Harlequins at the end of last season in order to take up the opportunity.

Simon, over time, will be working directly with UBS clients and developing their client base but in the short term, he has an extensive training and development programme to complete. Simon found the support from the team at CAS/S2B in terms of the challenging interview process, was very important to ensure that he was fully prepared.

Andy Nicol joins Royal Bank of Scotland

"As I worked with Careers After Sport, went through the assessment centre, and saw the programme, I saw the potential benefits. In the last 4 months since working with them, they have helped me better understand my transferable skills and walked me through the challenging interview and assessment process undertaken by the banks. I have been fortunate enough to earn a tremendous career opportunity with Royal Bank of Scotland which really excites me but is something I would not even have considered myself capable of 5 months ago!"

Mike Worsley to Insinger de Beaufort

It was a daunting prospect to seek a career outside the world of sport. The questions I asked myself were - Where do I start? What do I need to do? To have CAS/S2B supporting me through the process has been important and the preparation for my interviews and presentations was invaluable. Most sports people have never been interviewed formally before; it was good to have someone coaching me through.”

Michael has been able to secure a role with Credit Suisse, specifically growing their Sports Practice. He is delighted with this new opportunity and continuing his successful career in private banking.

Annabelle Bond climbs on with Advance

We recently linked up Annabelle Bond with Advance Performance. one of our business partners. Annabelle has made a name for herself by being the fastest female climber in the world to scale the seven summits. (www.annabellebond.com). The fit between her and Advance was ideal and Sport2Business was instrumental in helping her become a global ambassador for them, using her network to grow and help deliver their business in the UK, the USA and Asia.

Advance are corporate and personal development specialists, often using the lessons from, and links between, sport and business. To quote MD Jacqui Chatwood, “Annabelle is an ideal fit for our organisation. She is energetic, inspiring with a ‘can do’ attitude. Her impressive global network is of value, but more importantly, she believes in what we do, how we deliver the material and what we can do together. Thank you to S2B for listening to our needs and making the match.”

Annabelle is similarly enthralled, ‘As soon as S2B introduced me to Advance I was excited to be part of what they provide to clients. Our values are totally in synch and they are as passionate as I am about maximising personal and corporate potential.’

Shane Byrne

Shane has been commercially active throughout his rugby career and is active in several family businesses. We have been working with Shane in our Sport2Business division introducing him to Overseas Property Management organisations to help him maximise his genuine interest in property (a passion shared by a large percentage of our clients). Shane recently assisted our corporate partner, Focus International Property Limited (FIPL), in a major Dublin overseas property show. To quote John Luttrell, Director of FIPL, ‘Shane was of huge benefit to us – he acted like one of our full time staff, engaging prospective investors, asking all the right questions and by engaging the media added real value. The show was hugely successful for us and Shane was integral to that success. This experience has motivated us to engage Shane as an ongoing partner to help develop our business into Ireland and to assist us in our growth in England’.

Shane commented ‘I thought I was pretty well prepared for life after Rugby but the Careers After Sport and Sport2Business team have definitely opened my eyes to commercial and personal development opportunities that I would not have thought of.’

Beaufort Appoints Sean Fitzpatrick, All-Blacks Superstar and Rugby World Record Holder, as Consultant

May 2007 saw the appointment of Sean Fitzpatrick, ex-captain of New Zealand’s formidable All-Blacks rugby team and world rugby record holder, to Insinger de Beaufort. Sean is working closely with their international private banking division on enhancing existing relationships with clients and building new relationships with prospective clients through his impressive network of sport and business contacts.

Piers White, Chief Executive of Insinger de Beaufort UK said: “We are delighted to be welcoming somebody of Sean’s calibre to Insinger de Beaufort. His wealth of experience not only includes an international rugby career that many sportsmen can only dream of but time spent as a highly regarded business consultant to leading companies, a motivational speaker and TV commentator.

“Sean’s enviable network of contacts, straddling both the sport and business spheres, will play an important part in enhancing our relationships with existing clients and the further expansion of our international private client base.”

Sean Fitzpatrick said: “I am very excited to be working with Insinger de Beaufort. Its high-quality team and entrepreneurial culture made it a compelling choice for me. I am looking forward to helping their team with various marketing activities and to developing relationships with existing and new clients.”

Our fourth nationwide business forum was held in London at the award winning head office of ISG. Following on from equally successful events in Cardiff, Newcastle and Manchester, the evening was attended by sportsmen and women from a wide variety of sports including rugby, cricket, athletics, hockey, fencing, skiing, to name a few. Over 80 people attended in total with a wide representation from the business world covering all the major sectors.

The highlight of the evening was undoubtedly a key note speech from All Blacks legend Sean Fitzpatrick who shared with the audience his All Blacks journey as a player and the lessons and values carried into his life post rugby. Other speeches were given by CAS/S2B clients Simon Miall, Dan Harris and Shane Byrne. All three talked extensively of their experiences exiting sport and the importance of planning the future after competing/playing ceases. Speeches from the business community included Tom Lutterell from Focus International Property, who gave the audience an honest insight into the positive impact that Shane had had on their business. The evening was brought to a close by David Entwistle, Group Financial Director of our partners, ISG. David spoke of the rationale behind ISG working closely in partnership with the team at CAS/S2B and their excitement at the strategies and plans in process.

We regularly hold Work Experience Days with our corporate partners to give sports professionals the opportunity to gain a clearer insight into working in a particular role or industry.

We recently held another work experience day with Coca-Cola Enterprises (CCE). Attending were four Olympic athletes and two premiership rugby players. The day involved a motivational introduction from CCE Regional Director, Daryl Jelinek, then the sports stars spent a day on the road meeting clients, delivering stock and bombarding CCE with questions.

The day was a huge success from both the athletes and CCE’s perspective, so much so that Coca- Cola Enterprises have been working diligently behind the scenes to create opportunities for three of the attending Olympic athletes. These athletes, although funded, need to supplement their income to achieve their Olympic dream and they have been delighted to have the potential opportunity of working with an ‘employer of choice’ like Coca-Cola. The athletes did create a very positive impression with the CCE staff through their positive attitude, drive for achievement and communication skills – all core competencies sought by Coca-Cola.

To quote Chris Hayman, HR Manager CCE, ‘The sports stars were a credit to themselves and their sports. They were keen to learn, asked very good questions, engaged with the clients and our staff well and pleasantly surprised us with their enthusiasm to gain experience while still chasing their Olympic dream. They all embodied the key competencies of teamwork, communication and drive for achievement that we always seek. We are keen to find ways of working with these athletes and will be working closely with them and CAS to create a ‘win-win’ arrangement.’

ISG Sponsor London Wasps

Members of the London Wasps rugby squad recently undertook a business and commercial exercise to develop their commercial skills base for life after professional sport. The exercise was developed by the Centre for Customised Executive Development at Cranfield School of Management. This was just one component of the Workshop Programme run by Careers After Sport and sponsored by ISG, one of our corporate partners. The programme has been designed to provide an insight into the commercial aspects of running a business and a taste of the ‘softer’ skills required in a corporate environment.
ISG’s Finance Director, David Entwistle says; ‘The transition from professional sport to any career is a steep learning curve so training programmes like this are of huge benefit. This is a fantastic opportunity for ISG to work alongside talented professionals who have a great deal to offer the commercial sector.’

Ian McGeechan from London Wasps commented: ‘It’s very important for rugby players to gather experience and skills from opportunities outside their sport that will assist them once their rugby careers have ended. I firmly believe that education and this sort of development should be part of every rugby player’s life and this is an excellent initiative for our players to be involved in.’

Examples of initiatives include:

• Escorting clients to customised major sporting events with unique access to elite sports stars: testimonials, dinners, rugby internationals, wimbledon, golf days, tailor made events around Olympic sports etc.
• We proactively use our network to assist partners in training and development using examples from sport in areas such as motivation, leadership and ‘performance measurement’.
• We regularly sit with partners to plan major entertainment initiatives to see how we can use sport to increase the impact and effectiveness.