Broadstone engages private security sector with new recruitment platform

News
15/01/2018


A recruitment platform and mobile application offering a new way of working for the private security industry has launched this week.


Manchester City Centre-based Broadstone Engage was set up last year by Tom Pickersgill, who has launched the new recruitment platform and mobile app on Monday (8 January).


Tom had worked in the private security industry for three years prior to launching his business. This has given him a unique insight into how the sector could improve, making him well-placed to see a gap in the market for a new recruitment platform. In particular, it was clear to Tom that the private security sector needed to embrace technology. The sector has over 400,000 people working in it, making it a £5bn marketplace. However, there is a high turnover rate, and this makes recruitment costly, particularly as anyone new to the sector needs to go through a thorough vetting process before they can start working.


Broadstone has created an online platform to enable jobseekers and employers in the sector to find each other and communicate seamlessly about opportunities, beginning a fully-compliant vetting procedure that is quicker and easier for both parties.


The launch follows Broadstone receiving investment from the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund (NPIF) last year. Broadstone received £200,000 from NPIF – Maven Equity Finance, a product fund managed by Maven Capital Partners, after Tom sought advice with his investor pitch and other strategic matters from Business Growth Hub, part of The Growth Company.


Tom was directed to the Hub by the Start Up Loan Company, who had initially given him enough fundingto build a Minimum Viable Product (MVP), for further support, where he was introduced to Shiraz Anwar, a specialist creative, digital and tech start-up advisor.


Shiraz explains:

“From our first meeting, Tom impressed me with his in-depth knowledge and understanding of the solution he wanted to bring to market.

Our primary focus was getting Tom investment-ready. This involved, among other things, introducing Tom to potential investors and preparing him for the pitches, registering Tom’s intellectual property of the idea and building high barriers to entry for his competitors. Finally, we also needed to identify the first key tech hires so, when investment did come through, the platform could be launched properly straight away.”


Following news of the investment, Tom was eager in his praise:

“Business Growth Hub has been fantastic in providing me with support and advice, but mostly, providing me somebody I could chat over my current thinking and pull all my thoughts together.

Being a founder, it can be very isolating. This meant having somebody there to talk through the progress I had made, plans that I needed to execute and the challenges I experienced was very valuable.”


The business used the funds received from the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund to extend its team of software developers, and build both commercial and community teams ahead of the launch of the new and improved platform in next month.


Tom has also used the funds to hire local talent, remarking that:

“It’s very competitive when trying to attract talent in Manchester, but the tech community is rapidly growing and we have very good universities here that we intend to build strong relationships with, alongside the wider community.”


For more information on Broadstone Engage and its new recruitment platform and mobile application, please visit broadstoneapp.com.


Businesses looking to access specialist support can visit www.businessgrowthhub.com for more information about the organisation’s extensive range of services. This and other Business Growth Hub projects are part-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the GM Business Growth Hub project designed to help ambitious SME businesses achieve growth and increase employment in Greater Manchester.


The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund project is supported financially by the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020 and the European Investment Bank.