2 minute read
Honeycomb... Boutique Agency Raises the Bar for Support Professionals
That’s the view of Mairead Scott, Managing Director at Honeycomb, one of the newest players in the recruitment marketplace here and a boutique agency specialising in the supply of both permanent and casual support professionals.
With 17 years in recruitment under her belt, Mairead moved from a senior role at MCS, Honeycomb’s parent company, to set up the new agency,
“We saw a clear gap in the market for professional services and business support,” she says, explaining that the business support heading covers a multitude of professional roles....executive assistants, office managers, even director level appointments.
“We started out in business in January of last year, we’ve grown our team from three to seven within that period and I think we’re definitely succeeding in elevating the support role to a much higher level. It is increasingly recognised as a crucial element in the business mix for both SME’s and much larger organisations.
“A lot of our people are professionals who are trusted advisers to the executives they work with, professionals who don’t just look after the traditional business support functions, but also play a role in the strategic direction of their businesses.
“They are people with certain technical skills, and these can vary, but with strong organisational skills, inter personal skills and a whole lot more besides. It sounds a bit obvious, but not every administrator is the same. They can specialise in technology, in finance, in sales... to mention a few.”
Honeycomb has its office based in Belfast’s Scottish Provident Building, from where an experienced team of seven looks after client companies and candidates alike. SeniorConsultant Louise Quinn looks after permanent recruitment in finance and accounting, whileJoe O’Hagan concentrates on large private sector clients such as PwC, EY and BDO.
Erin Butler is Honeycomb’sSenior Industrial Specialist, honing in on engineering and manufacturing as well as FMCGand distribution. The team is completed by Claire Connolly, a specialist in technology roles, and Stacey McClurg, who looks after operational roles across a number of key business clients.
“The talent very definitely exists. It’s our job to find that talent,” says Mairead. “As in any area of recruitment, you have active candidates who are out there looking for new roles, and you have passive candidates, people in jobs who aren’t out there looking for move but who might just consider it if one comes along.”
To underline the fact that these are key appointments, Mairead Scott points out that professional support roles these days can command salaries of £45,000 and above.
“It’s a very competitive marketplace, of course. There are other agencies doing the same kind of thing that we are, but without the dedicated focus on business support professionals. It’s that focus that makes us specialists in our chosen field.
“Our role is simple. We have to go out and find the right talent for our business clients.We can’t pretend that it’s easy.Sometimes it can be a real challenge. But, as things stand, this is as buoyant a market place as I’ve known over recent years. That’s despite the challenge of Brexit and other factors.”
Looking to the future, Mairead Scott says that Honeycomb is on the growth trail. “Yes, we’ve got ambitious growth plans. We plan to grow our own team, and we plan to work with more organisations across the private and public sectors to help them find the business support talent that they need.“This is a people business.We’ve got the right people onboard at Honeycomb....and we’re confident that we can find the right people for our clients.”
The Honeycomb Team: L-R Joseph O’Hagan, Laura Rea, Claire Connelly, Mairead Scott, Erin Butler, Stacey McClure and Louise Quinn.
