A recruitment consultancy in Southampton marked its first anniversary by making two employment moves of its own.
Orchard Recruiting, based at business hub Ocean Village Innovation Centre (OVIC), recruited Laura Baker as a permanent consultant and Rachel Marshall as a recruitment advisor.
Founded by Lisa Orchard, the firm has seen demand steadily increase from companies struggling to fill vacancies or expand themselves due to the UK’s labour shortage.
The start-up focuses on filling roles such as office administrators and customer service – temporary and permanent – for employers and job seekers, including in finance, accountancy, marketing, insurance, law, HR and manufacturing.
Lisa Orchard, Managing Director, said: “As well as Laura and Rachel joining, 25 candidates have been placed into permanent roles in Orchard’s first year.
“Business performance has exceeded expectations and the first year was also a good one because of the support we receive here from OVIC’s team, which is outstanding.
“We started out with a shared office to keep overheads down as much as possible, with organic financial growth providing us with the flexibility to scale up to our own office on site.”
Lisa added: “Employers across the Solent region are crying out for staff. According to figures from the Office for National Statistics, there were officially 1,105,000 vacancies in January to March.
“I’ve never known anything like in my 30 years’ experience in the recruitment industry. Companies tell me they could make more profit but are hampered by the lack of personnel.
“It’s also worth noting that candidates’ expectations can be unrealistic at times, perhaps because of the normalisation of work-from-home practices during and after the pandemic.
“There may be a gaping hole in the UK workforce but that doesn’t mean all employers are able to offer flexible conditions and top-whack salaries if the hire’s career experience doesn’t justify them.”
Stephen Deller, OVIC’s Centre Manager, said: “It’s lovely to see Orchard Recruiting flourish here at OVIC, with a great first 12 months including two appointments of its own and successful placements of candidates in a variety of roles.
“Reiterating what Lisa says, we are also hearing from companies about their frustrations in being held back from growth due to the tight labour pool here in the Solent region, which is home to 42,000 businesses and a population of 1.24 million.”
Other recruitment consultancies at OVIC, covering different fields, are SNG Healthcare and MCR, which specialises in the residential development sector.
OVIC, which has 67 serviced offices and meeting rooms over 30,000 sq ft, is operated by Oxford Innovation Space on behalf of the building’s private owner.
Oxford Innovation, which manages a growing network of centres across the UK, also runs a similar business hub – Fareham Innovation Centre, overlooking Solent Airport at Lee-on-the-Solent.
Looking for a professional serviced office? Please contact Stephen for a friendly, no-obligation chat and viewing: https://www.oceanvillage-ic.co.uk/contact-us/
