CEO Today United Kingdom Awards

www.ceotodaymagazine.com 102 CEO Today United Kingdom Awards 2018 RECRUITMENT MARK STEPHENS Founder & CEO of Smart Recruit Online ABOUT MARK STEPHENS I have enjoyed over 20 years of business management, operating at board level in the recruitment sector since 2000, but since 2011 I worked primarily with the development of recruitment software. In 2013 Smart Recruit Online were winners of the Chambers of Commerce award for innovation in business. It was a very proud moment and has inspired me to continue innovating and pushing the boundaries of recruitment technology and how we can contribute towards achieving even better outcomes in the future. I have spent nearly 20 years in the recruitment sector, mostly running my own business, but the work that I am doing right now at Smart Recruit Online is by far the most interesting. We have developed a truly ground breaking recruitment management system that makes recruitment of staff far easier, more efficient, more effective and more affordable. Much of our success has been down to the great team around me with certain key individuals who are just as committed as I am to the cause. We have recently launched SRO V4 and this was a massive £500k investment to move to a new technology platform with significant improvements throughout the system. The feedback has been exceptional and we now believe that we have the best recruitment management system in the UK. The business is on an upward growth curve of around 50% p/a and we are currently looking at a merger and external investment, in order to accelerate growth and increase our market share. I am very honoured to have been chosen to receive the CEO Today award, and although it sounds a bit cheesy, I would like to accept it on behalf of my team, who have put up with me over the years and who make what we do actually work. Mark has established a reputation within the recruitment sector for his knowledge, passion and enthusiasm for all things recruitment. For the last seven years he has been researching the recruitment landscape from both a technology and a behavioural science perspective. His insights into market trends and candidate behaviours are often used and quoted across many of the industry’s leading publications.