Stephen's Story

Stephen Brown is an Alumni Member of Vistage and this story relates to his time as a member.

Twenty years ago, Stephen Brown spotted a gap in the market for a specialist recruitment company. Initially, Stephen set up as an engineering consulting firm. Still, with a unique background in finding and hiring skilled people, he formed Euro Projects Recruitment to leverage his strengths and leverage the opportunity.

Stalling after a fast start

Euro Projects grew incredibly quickly, expanding its services to not only recruit engineers but also technical staff, management staff and more. However, having established a position in the recruitment market, keeping business growth consistent was a challenge. As Stephen notes, "Like a lot of businesses that had gone through a very rapid growth phase, we hit a plateau."

While his strengths in finding and hiring the right people weren't in doubt, he needed some new strategies and ideas to support sustainable growth.

Getting the strategies to progress and building relationships that flourished

Stephen sampled a Vistage Peer Advisory group, having met Vistage Chair, Adam Harris, at a business event. It proved a lightbulb moment, helping him find the strategies and ideas he needed to progress the business. 

Stephen gets immense value out of his peer group. The idea-sharing and collaboration help everyone in the group work through ideas, spot potential problems and come up with strategies to overcome them. 

"I don't think I'm unique in saying I'm fairly impatient. When I see what good looks like, I want it for my company immediately. That's where Vistage really works as when you set your sights on something; they'll help you identify where the roadblocks could be." 

Stephen also found inspiration from Vistage Open Days, which bring together hundreds of business leaders who learn new ideas and concepts from renowned keynote speakers.

"Vistage is like a gym where you can get fitter and faster, it's a chance to relax and reflect, and there's the capability and skill of a personal trainer to get you where you want to go."

Through the support of Vistage, Stephen has been able to take a step back and focus on running the business rather than being in it.

He has the time and space to focus on strategic planning, diversifying the business and taking of the business and the direction of a new company within the group.

In 2015, Euro Projects Recruitment achieved double-digit growth, a goal which Stephen said his Vistage group held him accountable to and supported him in achieving. Euro Projects Recruitment has also seen staff engagement increase across the business, staff turnover drop below 3% and absenteeism at an all-time low as a consequence of the changes Vistage encouraged Stephen to make. 

 "It's not just me as a leader who has seen the benefits; they have been felt at every level in the company in our efficiencies, our culture and how we run. Really, our whole business is an advocate of Vistage!"