2022 Wrap-Up
Although Unite People are very much looking forward to 2023, and all the opportunities it will bring the business, we will always remember 2022 affectionately as a year full of incredible highlights and noteworthy business developments. To name just a few: in 2022, Unite People successfully completed its Management Buyout (MBO), established its very own Training Academy, and won the “Best Staffing Firm to Work For UK.”
Our newly formed Training Academy gives new starters the skills and confidence they need to flourish in the Civil Engineering Recruitment Industry. We believe in empowering our employees to perform as if they were the CEO, and we find that giving this level of trust often produces valuable outcomes. This level of autonomy demonstrates that the business is true to its sole purpose – to offer possibilities beyond one’s expectations. The Training Academy has received glowing feedback from participants – they highlighted how unique and impressive it was for a company to invest so much time and energy into new starters from their very first day with the business.
Monitoring and appraising employees against our core values – Put People First, Quality over Quantity, Authenticity, Listen and Learn and Think Big – has proven to generate heightened revenue as a by-product of our fantastic work culture. This was recognised by the Staffing Industry Analysts (SIA) who awarded Unite People their Grand Prize for “Best Staffing Firm to Work For UK” in the 10-50 employees’ category. We were both proud and humbled to be ascribed this prestigious title for 2022.
Over the past year, Unite People – long-standing employees and new-starters alike – have enjoyed reaping rewards. For example, in March this year – in recognition of exceeding their annual push target – UPL’s highest performing individuals enjoyed a trip away to Paris to watch England play France in the Six Nations Championship Final.
Other highlights of 2022 included our summer conference, which took the entire company to Dublin in July for a presentation detailing UPL’s targets and achievements. Everybody enjoyed dining at Marco Pierre White’s Steakhouse before dancing the night away – a well-earned celebration of the team’s collective hard work. Unite People’s highly anticipated winter conference will take place in January 2023. This month, both the Leeds and London teams have enjoyed festive celebrations in their respective cities.
Businesswise, UPL has expanded its portfolio of clients to include Keltbray, Murphy Group and VolkerStevin. Internally, the company has seen growth too, with the arrival of two new additions to the central team, our Marketing and Sales Support Assistants, who will help meet the increased workload of our growing business, alongside six new Candidate Managers. Notably, in August 2022, UPL broke two records internally, with 17 permanent placements made and £200k NFI. The business has also doubled its headcount.
Perhaps most significantly, 2022 saw founding director and 50 per cent shareholder Ross Bayston acquire the remaining shareholding of former fellow director Tom Perkin, to become the sole owner of the business. Bayston is energetic, ambitious, and driven. Leading from the front of the business, he sums up this years’ progress: “We have built significant momentum this year, which will be realised in 2023 and beyond.” The MBO will empower employees to grow together as a unit, and to progress with the shared passion of excelling in the world of Civil Engineering.
The external climate is ready for UPL to really thrive under its core value “Think Big” – the business wouldn’t be where it is today if its founders didn’t first embody this principle. Authentic, ambitious, and impactful, UPL is enthusiastic about imminent projects for which we will be heavily recruiting. For example, in the North, we are looking forwards to Cumbria’s potential, with upcoming works exceeding £1billion. Read more on Cumbria’s projects here: blog/cumbrias-potential/bp39/.
In the Capital too, 2023 will be the ‘Year of the Catch-up’ following post-pandemic delays says Construction Enquirer’s Aaron Morby, reporting on Deloitte’s London Office Crane Survey, which expects 2023 to see the highest volume of new office space for twenty years in London. Read more here: https://www.constructionenquirer.com/2022/11/21/2023-to-be-year-of-catch-up-for-london-office-projects/
These exciting glimmers of progress throughout the UK build on four months of positive headway recently reported in ONS figures, where the Construction output rose to almost 5% above the pre-pandemic level.[i] The growth testifies to the fact that the UK government are looking to accelerate their delivery of infrastructure projects through substantial investment. Watch this space!
[i] Aaron Morby, “Construction output grows for fourth month running,” Construction Enquirer, https://www.constructionenquirer.com/2022/12/12/construction-output-grows-for-fourth-month-running/
