Background on Paul Wilson
I was born and raised in Yorkshire. After finishing grammar school, I attended Nottingham University where I graduated with a degree in Physical Geography. At age 20, I felt I wasn’t quite ready to embark on a corporate career (or wear a pin-striped suit every day), and instead joined the Royal Marines. As the best trained infantry in the world, it represented an ideal opportunity for me to pursue my interest in mountaineering, while doing challenging outdoor activities. That included completing jungle warfare training in Brunei, as well as a United Nations tour of Cypress, during a four-year commission.
A key takeaway from my time in the Marines was that I gained an interest and passion for building high-performing teams. This influenced my decision, post-Marines, to join the internal recruitment team at EDS, a large US-headquartered tech company. One of the first agencies I met was Michael Page, and two years later, I decided to leave EDS and become a Michael Page recruitment consultant myself. I enjoyed a 26-year career there, highlights of which included launching the UK’s leading human resource recruitment business, as well as Michael Page’s operations in South Africa.
Background on Nigel Wright Group
In 2014, I had a chance meeting with representatives from Baird Capital, institutional shareholders at Nigel Wright at that time. This led to me being appointed Chief Executive of the business. I was already aware of Nigel Wright’s reputation as the leading and largest recruitment agency in the North East, as well as being Europe’s number one consumer industry search firm. Under my leadership, we’ve grown significantly by expanding our operations in Germany, launching an interim management division, and establishing new offices in Teesside, Leeds, and Amsterdam, with a Manchester office opening in January 2024.
After a 35-year career, I thought I’d seen everything until the Covid-19 pandemic happened. Despite the enormous challenges this created for us, we successfully maintained the size of the company. In October 2020, I initiated a management buy-out of Nigel Wright, which was completed in February 2022 with the business in the strongest position it had ever been in. We went on to break several consecutive monthly revenue records that year.
What is special about Nigel Wright?
I have always admired the business’s high standards of integrity and teamwork, but it’s the people here that remain the defining factor that sets us apart from other recruitment firms. What do I mean by that exactly? I think the people who work here have genuine professional respect for one another, and sincerely enjoy each other’s company. That feeling extends right across the Group and we’re able to harness the power of our people together in the best interests of clients.
The other distinguishing feature I would highlight is that we always put the customer at the heart of everything we do. We’re entirely committed to creating a superior ‘added-value’ solution to the customer’s challenge, whatever that might be. These factors make us distinctive and different from all of our competitors.
It is also worth noting the great charity work that we do. I think it’s important that businesses contribute to society in some way and I’m proud to say that Nigel Wright is a long-time supporter of Cancer Research, having raised over £100,000 for the charity during the last decade. We work closely with Recruitment Junction too, a Newcastle-based organisation committed to helping ex-offenders get back into work.
How do you see the business evolving from here?
We’re busy growing our UK and European footprint. In 2023 we also opened a satellite office in New York to better serve European companies seeking our help in launching and/or expanding their operations in North America, as well as US-based businesses focused on growing in Europe. Beyond that, our consumer industry expertise and networks are also increasingly attractive to US clients who require domestic talent acquisition solutions. That’s where I see us going next – extending our reputation as Europe’s number one consumer industry search firm into the US market.
Paul Wilson’s interests outside of work
My wife, three adult children, and two grandchildren keep me busy. I’ve also maintained a keen interest in walking, climbing, and other outdoor pursuits, often in The Lake District. I’m especially interested in architecture and enjoy taking city breaks and exploring interesting places in the UK and overseas where I get to see impressive architectural works. My other passion is conservation and I like planting trees and doing my bit to conserve the countryside and protect our wildlife.
Who are 3 people you would invite to dinner and why?
1. The world’s most famous explorer, Sir Ranulph Fiennes, is an obvious one for me.
2. Because of my love of the Lake District and conservation, I would invite Beatrix Potter, who is not only a remarkably interesting person but also someone who dedicated an enormous amount of her time to helping preserve the Lake District’s way of life.
3. I consider myself a bit of a history buff, so my last guest would be the late historian, John Julius Norwich. He was actually an amateur historian with no formal academic training, who wrote the most amazing books, full of personality and interesting erudition. His works on France and Sicily are a tour-de-force in historical writing.
What advice would you give to a young Paul Wilson?
Apart from buying more properties? I would say, have more confidence in your own judgment. The journey to becoming a Chief Executive entails developing, over time, the ability to get most of the big calls right. If you’re well grounded, then you should trust your instincts, while always evaluating the arguments for and against any big decision.