Recruiting a key role for a family business

Sleeps 12 specialises in providing luxury, UK-based holiday accommodation specifically designed for large groups. Recognising the demand for high-end, memorable experiences, Sleeps 12 ensures every guest is catered for by offering premium activities and facilities - from hot tubs and indoor pools to dedicated games rooms and play areas. They offer amazing houses, with exclusive features, in fantastic locations.

The brief

Sleeps 12 was founded by Jess Vellacott, whose initial experience of renting out her family farmhouse - a strategic move for farm diversification - served as the successful model and foundation for the company.

As increasing numbers of property owners came on board, and demand for luxury UK accommodation grew, Jess was looking to fill a key role, to help take the business to the next level.

She turned to the Agile Recruitment team at the HR Dept, to guide her through the recruitment process and source a candidate for this essential position, who not only had the right skills but would fit within a small team, and with the culture of the business.

The solution

Tasked with finding somebody with a cultural fit, the skills and experience needed to drive the business forward, and work closely with the owners of the business, we talked in detail with Jess about the requirements of the role. We then created a detailed job description for an operations and business development manager.

Using a two prong-approach of advertising on jobs boards and strategically searching Linkedin, we attracted a number of high quality candidates. We put them through a rigorous screening process, assessing each applicants’ skills, experience, background and vision.

We presented three candidates for interview, one of whom was successfully recruited. We then handled all the reference checks, paperwork and onboarding, working closely with our HR Dept colleagues in Somerset.

Once this key position was filled, we went on to recruit sales and customer service staff, to grow the team at Sleeps 12.

The outcome

Jess found the experience very positive, from the first step of defining the role to onboarding the successful candidate.

“We went to the Agile Recruitment team with a brief, and they were able to advise me on what type of role we required. It was very important that we find someone with the same ethics and ethos, who would fit with our team. Because we are a small team, we were looking for someone with multiple skills to slide into different roles, so that initial advice from Agile Recruitment was key.

“They guided me through the whole process, which was all new to me. They really worked as a team to establish what I needed, and carried that throughout the whole experience.

“I would absolutely recommend the Agile Recruitment team, and they will be our first port of call when we next recruit.”

You can contact the Agile Recruitment team directly on agilerecruitment.col@hrdept.co.uk.