- Call us on 0121 355 6026 or email hello@quarsh.com
Learn more about the Quarsh team: working together with the simple aim of making talent acquisition and HR better for our clients – and so helping them get the right people into their businesses.
Co-Founder & Managing Director
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Co-Founder & Managing Director
View ProfileBack in 2010, I called Lucy and set up Quarsh. It turned out to be a great move. After well over 20 years in consulting HR and recruitment I have the platform to create and deliver really innovative, interesting and very importantly, effective solutions to issues around people and talent. 90% of problems in business come back to people, which means I’m in the great position of being able to help solve people’s problems 90% of the time; and I love solving problems!
I also love hitting things… it’s not as bad as it sounds, I promise… so when I’m not solving people problems I’m usually practising or teaching martial arts; I’ve been doing that for 30 years… I seem to be a creature of habit!
When Jason called me in 2010 to talk about setting up Quarsh, it was an easy decision. I loved Exec Search and now I could use the same principles across a whole client, not just the Exec team. My only condition was that we do everything properly – no cutting of corners, looking at half the market or submitting an ‘ok’ shortlist.
Assessing people at the top of their game gives a great perspective on what makes businesses work well and how people make the most of their careers, which is the foundation of strategic HR. I spend a lot of time talking to business leaders about their headaches and finding ways to make their lives easier. If a problem isn’t about cashflow, it’s about people, and working out that strategy really energises me.
I have three big passions which I’d rather be doing than work any day – SCUBA, messing around with my family and pottering in my garden. All three thoroughly annoy me at times.
I’ve been working in recruitment since 1997, covering a wide range of industries, most business functions and levels from graduate programmes through to senior management. Working with everything from small businesses through to large corporates, my recruitment time has mostly been split between RPO and in-house roles, and has included a significant amount of international work, mostly across Europe.
Alongside recruitment, I have an interest in MI and reporting, and have also looked after HR reporting and analytics in previous roles, giving me what many consider to be an unhealthy liking of spreadsheets and data!
Outside of work, and when family life permits, you’ll find me on an archery range, out for a run or playing video games.
After leaving the teaching profession where I taught English, I started my career in recruitment in 2011. Working initially in agency and moving into in-house/RPO recruitment where I have managed various greenfield projects in recruitment/talent and HR.
I enjoy the satisfaction gained from recruitment, in matching the perfect candidate to the business/client – smiles all round! Utilising attraction and selection tools and techniques to ensure I meet the exact brief of the business/client and by securing the candidate their perfect role.
I have worked across a multitude of industries and therefore I had to gain knowledge of the industries fairly quickly. As an eternal student, this has been exciting – self-directed learning and research (sounds geeky I know!)
I now utilise my passion for learning for the wider business, looking at MI trends internally and Industry trends externally to ensure the business and our people have the right tools and training that’s required to ensure we keep delivering the highest level of service for our clients.
Outside of work I’m very down to earth, no airs or graces kind of guy, and therefore I don’t go in for all this fancy foods and wines malarkey. But, I do enjoy a social pint with friends and family and can often be found with my head stuck in a good book, or engrossed in a good Drama on the TV.
After completing my Spanish and Management degree all those years ago in 2003 and a couple of stints living in Spain and South America, I came back to my Brummie homeland and kick started my career in Recruitment. 17.5 years later I’m still here and loving what I do.
I have worked for agencies, RPO and mostly in house recruitment across a number of sectors including Financial Services, HR, Retail and Hospitality, Facilities Management and Engineering and recruited for these across all business units.
I took a brief break from In House Recruitment after my daughter was born and worked for myself doing yet more recruitment, but also providing virtual business support services. And even a brief stint managing a website and creating all the content for that.
Recruitment has always been my passion, and I love to build long-lasting relationships with my clients and work as a true partner to them, acting as an extension of them and delivering a first class candidate experience.
Recruitment may be my work passion, but obviously outside of work I love lots of things. I love food, and trying to adapt my own recipes to make them even better – especially if they don’t contain the devil’s food, tomatoes!!! I love baking, and particularly love the challenges that my children set me for their birthday cake briefs (best one being Jurassic World meets Easter)! A city girl through and through, I love to try and get out to do things with family and friends, and am seriously looking forward to being able to get back out everywhere very soon.
And my not so secret guilty pleasure is all things Harry Potter – still waiting for my letter from Hogwarts!
April started in working in Recruitment in 2007, she has worked both Agency and In-house, supplying Permanent, Contract and temporary staffing across various industries and sectors. She joined Quarsh in July 2021 and is fitting right in!
April prides herself on delivering a high level of service and is passionate about building long term business relationships with her clients and candidates.
Outside of work April loves to spend time with her family, she’s a big foodie (as was demonstrated in our summer chocolate-making extravaganza – don’t steal her chocs!) and she loves to travel – she hasn’t been everywhere yet, but it’s on her list.
What do April’s colleagues say about her…
“Like the new pup you’ve just brought home, full of energy, noise, excitement & entertainment! She doesn’t let go of anything, gets stuck into everything around her & is prepared to challenge the status quo!!”
Julie has over 20 years in the recruitment industry delivering end to end recruitment services spanning a multitude of landscapes. People have always been at the forefront of her career which compliments her love for building and strengthening partnerships with candidates and clients alike.
She’s lucky enough to live in a quaint countryside village surrounded by an abundance of wildlife so when she’s not working, she has her wellies on out walking the dog!
With a background in business management, I approach recruitment from a different perspective – I understand the pain of trying to free up time for reviewing CVs and interviewing whilst holding together an incomplete team. I understand that personality is key in building cohesive and successful departments and that the balance between urgent need and waiting for the right person is a perpetual dilemma.
I strive to immerse myself in client culture and values, fully understand the business challenges and requirements, and work tirelessly to provide the best possible candidate in the most time efficient way. When I manage to switch off, I love maths puzzles, Grand Sumo (watching, not competing!), design, painting and cities at daybreak.
I started working in recruitment as a resourcer in March 2020 dealing solely within the Dental Industry. I have experience recruiting for small independent and large corporate practices where I dealt with candidates on a day-to-day basis.
No two days are the same in recruitment and I love how the work really keeps me on my toes! I do also enjoy all things computer and IT, I jump at the challenge of helping solve an IT issue and if I can’t, then I’ll be all over Google until I learn how.
Born and bred in Leicestershire, I purchased my first home in the backend of 2021 on the edge of South Derbyshire, and soon after came my new challenge with Quarsh, where I joined to carry on providing the best resourcing support I can offer!
When not working you would probably find me at Cineworld watching the latest film release, or at home baking – I love all things cake (to be honest anything sweet in general). I am also a cat mummy to my boys Freddy & Hector, who probably own me more than I own them, but at least they give good cuddles!
Adrian has completed more than thirty years working in recruitment and he is in his eighth year with Quarsh. In that time, he has recruited into just about every position and across many different sectors, including IT and Telecoms, Professional Services, VC funded start-ups, Oil & Gas, Power and Manufacturing.
Adrian has recruited on various occasions across the USA, including in Texas, Colorado, North Carolina, and NYC. He has also fulfilled assignments in Australia, Malaysia, and the UAE, although more recently he has focused on recruiting into various UK and European locations – including Belgium, Germany, Scandinavia, Russia and the Czech Republic – for a number of clients.
If you have a challenge in recruiting someone into a specialist or senior post within your team, the odds are I have recruited someone into a similar post at some point.
As befits someone in his fifties, Adrian’s leisure pursuits rarely get more energetic than walking his Springer Spaniel, following Plymouth Argyle, planning his next cruise, or doting on his recently born first grandson. Adrian is a Janner, but he has lived in the North of England for all his working life, including 5 years as a teacher.
If you’re interested in joining our team, we’d love to hear from you. We’re always keen to meet people who share our values and our passion for delivery.
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