Sharps Redmore Rory Sullivan, Director

A successful business of more than 30 years’ standing, Sharps Redmore is a specialist acoustics consultancy firm, working with clients the length and breadth of the UK.

Who?

Sharps Redmore has a team of 22, including four directors, with staff across the UK and a head office at Ipswich, Suffolk.

Its work focuses on the provision of acoustic, noise, and vibration advice – which sees it working with public and private sector organisations, sports venues, power plants, educational establishments, and so much more.

Like so many highly ambitious, successful and busy firms, it has predominantly opted for the outsourcing model for its service requirements.

The background

With very little need to have called upon the specific services of HR in the past, Sharps Redmore had only ever previously called in a one-off practitioner solution when a particular issues had arisen. But this had been so rare as not to suggest the need for something with more continuity.

However, with issues arising during Covid, the firm’s directors agreed that it would be useful to make contact with an HR firm who could become their trusted partner in delivery on all employee and regulation matters.

An initial online meeting was instigated with MAD-HR. From very early on the approach by MAD-HR indicated to all directors that this would be a company with whom they could comfortably place their faith and look to begin transforming a number of procedural approaches within the business.

The case for support

With a particular disciplinary and employee matters to resolve in the midst of Covid, the directors began their HR outsourcing investigations, and were pleased to follow up with MAD-HR.

At the time, both parties wanted to clarify exactly whether Sharps Redmore did now need continued ‘retained’ support, or whether the MAD-HR toolkit scenario (more adhoc, and enabling a firm to access a whole variety of resources and updates) might be all that was required.

The flexibility that MAD-HR offer, mixing both approaches as needed to meet a company like Sharps Redmore’s needs, became very clear.

The approach

MAD-HR began working with Sharps Redmore under the toolkit arrangement in 2020, with a brief to help them resolve particular employee issues.

In doing so, this allowed the directors to get to know the MAD-HR team more closely, and offered MAD-HR a chance to look further into what the company could be doing on a more long-term basis, by way of improving and enhancing contracts, policies, handbooks and disciplinary procedures.

This insight allowed both parties to conclude that the affordable approach of the retainer would be a far more wise and forward-looking way to achieve their HR needs – particularly as the firm continues to grow its contract obligations and national reach.

Rory Sullivan, one of the four key directors of the firm, says doing so was absolutely the right decision and became very apparent as soon as both firms were working together.

“Sometimes you don’t immediately see what’s missing in your business or what you should be investing more time into, until such a point as it’s becomes far too evident– and in many respects, that’s what MAD-HR did,” he explains.

“We hadn’t been getting anything wrong, but all of our policies had been predominantly created in-house, and we were now acutely aware that some of those needed significant overhaul in the light of new regulations, or that professionals like the MAD-HR team would know of a far better way of going about things and making sure we were safeguarding everyone’s interests.

“In no time at all, they’d really got to grips with who we were and what we wanted to achieve – as good employers, and as a successful but very busy business.

“We’re now very pleased to be in possession of comprehensive and up to date policies and procedures, and our new handbook for all employees is nearly complete – there’s no way we could have achieved that level of quality without them.”

The verdict

Sharps Redmore might initially only have thought a one-off HR requirement was the order of the day, but, clearly they now believe that having found the right trusted partner and achieved so much already – outsourcing in a retained way is right for them.

Rory says: “There’s no way we would go back now. It was absolutely the right route to go, in part prompted by all that was going on amid Covid, and we’ve been nothing less than delighted with how they have worked with us.

“They did everything we expected of them and more, and are always taking that very sensitive but important approach of challenging us as directors and making us see new ways which will often be far better for our business in the long term.”

Top client tip

“Whether you’re prompted to do so because of an issue arising, or because you have a sense that your own policies and procedures are a little outdated or too homespun, it’s absolutely worth getting an external practitioner to take a look.

“We’re very pleased we turned to MAD-HR and have faith that they will keep us on the right path in all HR matters.”

*To read more about the work of Sharps Redmore go to sharpsredmore.co.uk

You can email Rory direct at rory@sharpsredmore.com