Last night at a prestigious awards ceremony in Pall Mall, Jason Luckhurst, Managing Director of Practicus, won one of the highest accolades in business: the Institute of Directors South East Young Director of the Year Award.
Luckhurst's 34 years have seen a meteoric rise for the young entrepreneur. In just four years, he has built interim management recruitment business Practicus from scratch, alongside co-founders Paul Wandless and Boyd Kershaw. The company is currently on track to turnover £32m by the close of 2008.
Judges were impressed by Luckhurst's complete commitment to customer service. Both interims and clients alike are using Practicus because its 60 staff have quality of service at the heart of their recruitment model. The company spent £3,200 per head on staff training in 2007 to ensure that client requirements are fully understood and met. This year that figure is expected to rise to £4,000 per head.
The Award was presented by Emma Crosby - news presenter and soon to be GMTV anchor woman - who questioned Luckhurst about Practicus' international expansion plans and described the business as "very exciting".
With headquarters in Henley-on-Thames, as well as offices around the UK, Practicus intends to open an office in the Netherlands in the first half of 2009.
Commenting on the award, Luckhurst said, "This is a ringing endorsement that Practicus as a business is gaining recognition beyond the recruitment community. I'm delighted that the Institute of Directors have shown so much interest in both myself and the business. The award for me is more than just about personal achievement. Behind every successful entrepreneur is a special team, and I'm no exception. I have the best team supporting me that anyone could ask for and I'm hugely excited about the journey we are making together.
"I was once told that our quality-focused model simply wouldn't work - that it wasn't a scaleable business proposition. I'm happy to say I've proved the doubters wrong. In fact, if anything, the recent economic troubles have revealed how important it is for organisations to have absolutely the right the people in the right positions during times of change, and we hope this will continue to drive our business throughout 2009."
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