20 entrepreneurs


A rewarding approach is just the job for recruitment giant


Described as a ’true entrepreneur’, Paul Huntingdon is founder of the multi-million pound Havant- based Serocor Group, home to a stable of specialist recruitment companies operating nationwide, with hundreds of employees. Advanced Resource Managers (ARM), Hawker Chase Executive and Optamor are among the brands in his ever-growing portfolio and at the group’s heart is a determination for everyone to share in its success and be able to develop their potential. Constantly on the lookout for the next big idea, he purports never to have a ’down day’ and says work should be fun. In 2008 he was a finalist in the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year. He spoke to Alison Dewar about the secrets of his success


Born in Hemel Hempstead, Huntingdon’s family moved to Hayling Island when he was seven. His father was a successful entrepreneur, working originally for Thorn EMI and then buying and selling his own computer tape storage business, instilling in his son a thirst for success. Studying for a degree in computer science from the University of Portsmouth, Huntingdon joined IBM for a year’s internship – ironically on the same site where his headquarters now stands – before realising that a corporate career wasn’t what he wanted. After a spell travelling and working in Australia, he returned to the UK for his first venture into recruitment and in 1996 set up ARM, seeing it grow from zero into a £120 million business and more recently into the Serocor Group of companies.


grandfather had left me a small amount of money, so I bought a house and converted it into two flats, one for me and one to rent out and, because I needed a job, I fell into recruitment. I was successful and when the company I worked for tried to restrict my contract, I left and set up ARM, a service-led recruitment and training business. I roped in my mother to work for free on the admin and we effectively had a broom cupboard for an office but we were profitable within the first month.


What was your first job?


Working for IBM during my degree taught me that I needed to do something where I could use my own identity.


In Australia I did


all manner of jobs, one of which was taking tourists on three-wheeled bicycle sightseeing tours. I spotted a niche catering specifically for Japanese tourists, so I learned some Japanese words and did quite well at it.


I


realised I was good at getting on with people and saw that if you have a smile and a can-do attitude, then you won’t have to worry too much in life.


How did you make the move into recruitment?


After a year I came back to the UK, I wanted to do something more challenging. My


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I worked 14-hour days, seven days a week for a really low salary, I roped in my friends to join us because they were effectively ”cheap labour” and a lot of them are still with us. We grew very rapidly and were very successful purely by building good relationships and treating people in the way that you would want to be treated if you were a client.


How did you go on to build the Serocor Group?


In 2000, IT recruitment ground to a halt but I bumped into an old client of mine in Portsmouth who said I should diversify, so I set up ARM engineering. My goal was to get to 10 people working within our business, but I realised if I stopped there, no-one would have any career progression opportunities, so I kept going.


It was never about the financial


reward, it was just about being successful and making sure that I rewarded the people who had grown the business with me.


We evolved into the wider Serocor Group in March 2013, allowing the individual MDs and directors to run their businesses with the


THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – SOLENT & SOUTH CENTRAL – SEPTEMBER 2015


benefit of our expertise and knowledge, plus the necessary toolkit and support available when they need it.


We operate predominantly in the UK but we also do quite a lot of international business and we plan to expand both in Europe and internationally.


What drives you?


I have always been very competitive and having seen my dad be quite successful, I always wanted to outgun him.


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