Client - Nonwovenn
Roles - Director for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) & Operations Director
Overview
Nonwovenn is a privately-owned business manufacturing niche technical fabrics catering to a range of different industries including packaging, innovations, industrial and medical.
Founded from an audacious management buyout of a loss-making business in 2003 the business has grown from a turnover of £6.5 million and 50 people to a team now 210 strong and a turnover of more than £26 million. During this time, they completed the turnaround of two failed businesses, added scale to operations and set up two more companies along the way. The result is Nonwovenn is a profitable niche business with stable trading and a view to further organic and acquisitive growth on a worldwide scale. Securing a multi-million-pound investment package to fulfil growth ambitions in the UK and overseas will now see Nonwovenn add scale to its operations through further organic and acquisitive growth in years to come, as the group looks to establish a wider international presence.
Prior to recruiting these two Board roles, RMG has had a working relationship with Nonwovenn since 2016, recruiting into various disciplines at Board, senior and mid management levels. 2020 was a key year for Nonwovenn, strategically preparing for their further significant sustainable growth.
The Roles
The appointment of a Director of CSR had been discussed by the Board for a while, with the ever-increasing vital global needs to meet best sustainable practices and their desire to do this. This role would be involved in CSR leadership from all its diverse angles, strategically, technically, practically, holistically, including from regulatory, new product development, supply chain, people and manufacturing viewpoints.
The Operations Director, was an important role on the Nonwovenn Board, offering potential for future succession planning and requiring true 'buy-in' to the future and Nonwovenn's long term growth plans. With responsibility over two sites and full operations, this role would lead the drive for change, improvements and 'Operational Excellence' to support that next stage of accelerated growth.
Approach & Outcome
For both roles RMG were briefed to source and attract exceptional, commercially astute candidates operating in FTSE blue chip backgrounds, who were seeking to 'make a difference' and transfer their expertise into a smaller, more entrepreneurial and fast paced commercial SME environment.
RMG worked on a pure Search basis through targeted, 'true' headhunting. We identified local SW and UK-wide targeted global companies in relevant FMCG, non-woven, and other related manufacturing arenas, and identified a wide target list of named individuals for each role. Through meticulous and volume head hunt approaches and our series of interviews we vetted and pinpointed strong, highly recommended individuals for both of our shortlists. We were working in the background of Covid-19 restrictions, which were affecting candidates’ attitudes and their personal lives too, however both roles were successfully offered and accepted by candidates living outside of their local SW region.
Follow up
Nonwovenn proved itself to have its own rare, positive and entrepreneurial approach to recruitment during this period in 2020, by actively 'stealing a march' on the market to successfully start and conclude campaigns during Covid-19, including for these two important Board roles, besides other positions. (Whilst many other companies delayed their campaigns or were hesitant about recruiting, Nonwovenn's confidence in their own growth gave them a great advantage, not only seeing many exceptional candidates available on the market, due to their own employer’s restructuring, but also it attracted outstanding, like-minded candidates too, who were excited by the growth opportunity to move in this changing market and to accelerate their own careers.
“It’s hard to differentiate firms in this space but I see RMG as specialist headhunters. They have a brilliant understanding of our business and have taken the time to get to know me well. In 2020 we embarked on a clear recruitment path growing from 50 to 200 staff. RMG has helped me to recruit a full new Board to support our growth plans bringing in some very high calibre candidates.””
– David Lamb CEO Nonwovenn