News & Events

​Last week, the team were joined by Chris Dawson from 6th Door Training for a fantastic workshop – great timing at the start of the year allowing for personal growth, improving skills and learning tips and tricks to use throughout 2022!Designed and delivered by renowned sales trainer Chris Dawson from 6th Door Training, the course was tailor made for us at MorePeople.We asked Chris how he thought it went;“What a great team! Over an intense two-day workshop, everyone learnt about a deeper level of sales and selling. Learning to truly understand your customer, their challenges and their different needs has taken the team from being salespeople to professional consultants. The team learnt about creating high quality questions and developing high level listening skills as well as the psychology of selling and decision making. Being able to deliver a custom centric, consultative approach to sales in the recruitment sector is essential and the team got fully onboard with new ideas that had all been specifically designed for them and their differing roles within MorePeople.”Investing in our team is so important to enable us to give the best possible service to our clients and candidates. Andy Fitzmaurice, CEO of MorePeople comments;"I am passionate about investing in our people with training. Our consultants are our most important asset. Having a well-trained team means that we enjoy our jobs at MorePeople to the fullest. Our clients and candidates benefit from having super people to deal with too. We enjoy getting the opportunity to take some time away from the desk and work together as a team on personal development. Watch this space for the next training initiative (I am sure Chris at 6th Door will be back again too)"Chris continues; “Training your sales team should never be a sticking plaster, it should be a continuous process of development and support based around their needs and introducing modern, ethical practices. That’s why all the training I deliver is designed specifically for the team I’m working with and their goals and desires for the future. The MorePeople team were a pleasure to work with, lots of fun and most importantly – hungry to learn.”You can learn more about Chris and 6th Door here.

​Remote working in 2022…For a lot of the food industry, ‘remote working’ isn’t an option, however within the commercial environment it’s still a hot topic.Morten Andresen, Associate Director here at MorePeople specialises in commercial roles within the food industry has noticed the shift in mindset whilst working with clients and candidates and speaks about how to tackle this topic as we move through 2022..."2020. 2021. 2022.3 years that will go down in history.2020 – Brexit, then Covid hits.2021 – Vaccine and starting to take back control.2022 – who knows?Is this the year we stop talking about Covid? Only time will tell.Despite the challenges, we have been incredibly busy and beaten records throughout the last year without signs of this slowing down anytime soon. This all points to a thriving and driven work environment, one which has decided to step up to the mark and not let the pressures get to them.We’ve seen an unprecedented amount of change over the past few years. Whether that is change to the industries and the additional challenges across the board, or the massive shift in ways of working and people’s mindsets towards it. This is even more prevalent in Commercial roles and in one area in particular – the remote working debate! There is a definite benefit to being in the office and close to the packhouses etc, but the view of Commercial people is generally that they don’t need to be there 100% of the time.The requests for remote working have always been there, it’s just that not many businesses have been set up to accommodate it, or they haven’t wanted to. Previously there had always been enough businesses saying that remote working wasn’t an option, so the conversation stopped there, no questions asked.However, the balance has now shifted.The hive mind of the work force has determined that there are now enough remote working opportunities that it’s worth holding out for roles that will allow the work life balance they are looking for, and this is proving to be a headache for a lot of businesses. There are many legitimate reasons as to why remote working works well for some, and less well for others. The reality is that every employer and employee need to decide where they stand and be upfront about it – everyone has their own version of what ‘flexibility’ in the work place looks like.I suspect there is a usual bell curve with the vast majority looking for 2-3 days in the office and 2-3 days remote. I would strongly urge that you have a plan for what YOU want, as an employer or employee. The truth is, this just becomes another factor in finding the right fit - culture is, after all, the most important fact in hiring people. This might just become a clear indication of how those cultures could align…or not."If you’d like Morten and his team to help you find the perfect fit for you, be it as a client or a candidate, give him a call on 01780 480 530 for a confidential chat!

​Plant a Tree for Jubilee!The Worshipful Company of Fruiterers are proud to launch the Treebilee Project, in support of the Queen’s Green Canopy. The QGC is a unique planting initiative created to mark Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022, and invites people from across the UK to ‘Plant a Tree for the Jubilee’. The planting of trees will create a legacy of honour of The Queen’s leadership of the Nation, which will benefit future generations. Find out more here.The Worshipful Company of Fruiterers have fruit trees available for those that would like to support the project in return for a donation to their Fruiterers Charitable Funds. The trees will be delivered with planting and aftercare instructions, an instructional video as well as stakes and ties to make for a straight forward planting process!With our Exec Chairman Guy Moreton being a Liveryman himself, we at MorePeople are keen to get involved and support the project, getting local communities planting trees and enjoying the benefits, as well as supporting the Worshipful Company of Fruiterers.Matt Hancock, Upper Warden at the Worshipful Company of Fruiterers states; “Thank you to MorePeople for their support helping us celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee, helping our environment, improving our communities and raising money for important causes. Treebilee really is a fantastic opportunity to do so much good at various levels” ​We’re looking forward to our trees being delivered in March in time for Spring planting, and donating them within our local community here in Stamford. ​The deadline for ordering is 18th February 2022, If you’d like to get involved and find out more, click here!​

​Working in horticulture…At MorePeople we’ve got some really knowledgeable and passionate recruiters who specialise in the horticulture and agriculture sector.Lycia and Sarah cover the whole of the UK working with some of the top clients and candidates in the industry, and are still as busy as ever day in day out finding candidates their dream jobs and clients their perfect candidates. There are so many different types of roles available in the horticulture industry that we deal with on a daily basis. To name just a few;·         Grower Managers·         Junior Grower Managers·         Plant Heath / Crop Manager ·         Nursery Managers ·         Propagation Managers ·         Technical Managers·         IPM SpecialistsIn terms of location, horticulture jobs could see you in a variety of settings, such as Farm, Garden Centres or nurseries. You may wish to specialise in irrigation, propagation, husbandry - the list continues. Or maybe you’d like to become an expert in a certain type of fruit? To see all of Lyica and Sarah’s current Horticulture vacancies, click here. We've seen some fantastic progressions within the industry, and helped many candidates along their journey, as Lycia has witnessed;‘I am working with a candidate who started their career in Horticulture in 2005 as a supervisor on a soft fruit farm, spraying plants, supervising staff, loading and unloading vehicles for a year. They then wanted to step up so after a year moved up to a Horticultural Manager. They kept moving up the ladder within Horticulture and they are now a Commercial Growing Manager overseeing the commercial strawberry crop and husbandry requirements within the business.’Horticulturist’s can obtain a number of qualifications; PA1, PA6, BASIS, RHS Courses, and diplomas, degrees and btechs in Horticulture or Pathology and Sarah has seen many examples of candidates using qualifications to progress their career in horticulture;‘I’m working with an exceptional candidate that moved to the UK in 2013 and quickly started their career in Horticulture. Starting as a Nursery Operative, quickly worked their way up in 3 years to Grower Supervisor. They have continually studied throughout their career gaining various qualifications and certificates and are truly passionate about the industry. As a result, they have recently taken on a Grower Manager position in an exciting new business and I’m sure will continue to be very successful!’Want to make a start on your horticulture career, take it to the next step or find amazing candidates? Click to contact Lycia or Sarah!

​MorePeople new recruits...Another two new team members joined us on our first day back in January.James Pye joins us with a wealth of industry knowledge. Having spent 25 years working in the food industry starting in 2 AA Rosette Restaurants and Hotels as a head chef, then transitioning into Product Development in food manufacturing for some of the UK’s leading food manufacturers.James is now a senior consultant here at MorePeople and will be covering a range of roles. Ben Woodward joins the MorePeople academy to begin his career in recruitment. Ben left Stamford Endowed School at 18 and became a tree surgeon, before joining Copthill independent school as a Groundsman and Sports Coach, as well as working for Waitrose. ​​​To find out more about any member of the MorePeople team, click here or call us on 01780 480530 to talk about how we might be able to help you or your business. Want to know about working for MorePeople? Take a look >

​Big changes at MorePeople!We’re ready to kick 2022 off with a bang with exciting changes across the business. Peter Hunt Retiring21 years after co-founding MorePeople with Guy Moreton, Peter Hunt has retired from the business. Guy and fellow shareholder Andy Fitzmaurice have purchased Peter’s shares and now begin the exciting next chapter for MorePeople. Peter retires after a lifetime in the industry. Starting his career at Armitage Bros in the petfood sector, he moved to GW Padley in the late 80s in a finance and accountancy role and then spent a number of years with Geest (now Bakkavor) in the 90s before meeting Guy in 1999 when Peter was a Divisional Finance Director of Redbridge Holdings (now Total Produce). Together, Guy and Peter founded MorePeople in 2000 and went on to make a difference to the lives of thousands of clients and candidates in the recruitment sector and laid the groundwork for the company we have today. Guy summed up the past 21 years with Peter; “I could not have wished for a better business partner, he has worked tirelessly to help build MorePeople into a market leading recruiter within our sectors and was a constant source of support, advice and friendship!" We wish him and his wife Luci (another fresh produce lifer) a very happy retirement. Another retirement this year came with our long-standing Chairman Michael Paske hanging up his boots. Michael became a Non-Exec Director of MorePeople in 2004 and has served not only as the company Chairman but also as a mentor to Guy, Peter and Andy in that time. Michael’s long career in the food and agriculture sectors has seen him as Vice-President at the NFU, founder of Exotic Farm Produce and a range of other directorships. We can’t thank Michael enough for his contribution to MorePeople, Guy continued; “For the past 15 years or so Peter and I had Michael’s shoulder to lean on and his wise counsel was always insightful and most of the time, absolutely bang on! His support and friendship has been incredible and I will miss them both. Hopefully we can grow the company and make them both proud”. 2021 2021 was a fantastic year for the recruitment industry and this rang true at MorePeople. We smashed our targets and got back on track with our growth plans – we added 9 new faces to the team in a range of roles. Working across the food/horti/agri supply chains, we worked with over 350 different clients, all over the UK, on a variety of roles with salaries ranging from £20,000 to £200,000. Structural Changes The departure of Peter allowed us to make some very positive structural changes in the business; Guy’s role becomes Executive Chairman and Andy is now the CEO. Richard Hanwell – one of the 9 appointments from last year - picks up the role of Managing Director and, after 10 years with the business, Morten Andresen joins Luan Harrison in the role of Associate Director. As the majority shareholder Guy sets the business strategy and helps the newly appointed CEO and MD grow the business. Guy also continues to be responsible for the MorePeople Executive Recruitment Division, which recruits MD’s, CEO’s, CFO’s and Non Exec Directors. As newly appointed CEO, Andy Fitzmaurice states, “As CEO and shareholder, I lead the business, drive business strategy, performance and growth. It’s my job to ensure that we are ‘doing the right things’. We have some very exciting plans at MorePeople. The new shareholding and company structure is future-proofed and fit to deliver for everyone who is involved in the business. Each quarter we get better; it’s an exciting journey to be on and there’s a real sense of pride and enthusiasm for what we do.” Looking forward to 2022 There are more hiring plans for 2022 – we have started the first week back with two new hires – and there are some very, very exciting plans to be confirmed soon, which will see us move to a new premises in Stamford. The new office will be a massive step towards realising our potential recruiting in sectors that we are knowledgeable and passionate about. ​