Pictured above: (l-r) Luke Adamczyk and Jason Guy (both First4Staff)

A Wolverhampton-based recruitment specialist is celebrating its tenth birthday in style by bouncing back from the recession with ambitious growth plans.

First4Staff, which has offices in Chapel Ash and Cannock, has seen business smash the £2.5m barrier after securing new contracts with a range of blue chip clients across industrial, commercial, driving and its newly launched teacher resource service.

It builds on the appointment of two new consultants to spearhead the expansion and the possibility of launching further offices in Birmingham and Telford, the latter marking its first concerted move into Shropshire.

Jason Guy, who runs the company with Finance Director Luke Adamczyk, picked up the story: 

"The downturn was a difficult period for the business and demand for temporary workers dropped considerably, something that took a lot of people in the industry by surprise."

The Princes Trust mentor continued: "We could have bemoaned our luck, sat back and hoped things changed - we preferred a more positive approach and decided to get out there, market the business more, make new relationships and build on our reputation for reliability, flexible solutions and quality of staff.

"It is an approach that paid off and, when the market slowly started to pick-up, we were at the forefront, getting people into positions. Manufacturing, in particular, has enjoyed a major resurgence and an increase in demand for staff, many in highly skilled positions."

Established from a home office in 2001, First4Staff has grown into one of the most respected agencies in the West Midlands, providing recruitment solutions for more than 100 companies involved in industry and commerce, the public sector and education.

At any one time, the Wolverhampton-based firm will have over 1000 workers on its books and thanks to investment in a bespoke software package can provide solutions to most client requests within fifteen minutes.

This has seen them develop a prestigious order book of local, regional and national clients, who regularly utilise a database of skilled technicians, warehouse operatives, administrative staff and HGV drivers.

A new specialist consultant, Lisa Morris, has also joined its ISO 9001 and REC-accredited team and is responsible for sourcing Key Stage 1 and 2 teachers for schools in Wolverhampton and Walsall.

"The educational side of the business is going really well and shows how we have diversified to offer new services," explained Luke Adamczyk, who joined the business as Finance Director in 2004.

"We pride ourselves on our ability to find the right people and have in place an extensive interview process that identifies the perfect candidate for the position. There are also a number of guides, such as CV writing and interview techniques, available online to help people develop their skills."

He concluded: "After a tough 2010, we expect next year to offer significant growth opportunities and we would anticipate increasing turnover to £3m by the end of 2011."

First4Staff, which offers a 24-hour hotline service 365 days a year, is planning to franchise the brand out in other regions of the UK, with a finite concept being drawn up ready for launch in the Summer.