TONY Macdonald joins Progressive Personnel

TONY Macdonald has joined Progressive Personnel as Account Manager in Glasgow. He worked as a manager for STA Travel in Glasgow, running two stores in the city for two years. Prior to this he was a call centre manager for Unijet.

Tony, 35, will be dedicated to looking after the company’s expanding client base in Scotland and says he is looking forward to moving from travel to recruitment. He said: “I decided to apply to Progressive Personnel as the thought of working for a young, fresh and dynamic company appealed to me.

“We used the company at STA Travel and I was impressed with the service so when I saw they were looking for an account manager in Scotland I was thrilled.

“I’m looking forward to working with their existing clients here and building on their reputation in the marketplace to attract new business.

“I plan to achieve this by focusing on providing high quality service and building up relationships based on trust.”

James Roberts, Managing Director of Progressive Personnel, said: “We’re very happy to have Tony on board. “Our customer base in Scotland has grown significantly and Tony’s appointment shows our commitment to ensuring they receive excellent service.”

Nov 2007

Bev Dumbleton joins Progressive Personnel as Non-Executive Director

Gold Medal Travel’s Bev Dumbleton has joined recruitment firm Progressive Personnel as a non Executive Director. Bev, 39, who is currently Head of UK Reservations at Gold Medal Travel, will act for the firm on a consultancy basis.

She will advise Managing Director James Roberts on management and financial matters and help put in place strategies to ensure the company’s continuing growth.
The company has a presence in Manchester, London and Glasgow and has a team of experienced travel professionals dedicated to placing travel workers in the right job.
Bev has worked in travel since the age of 16, successfully running call centres in the North of England for STA Travel and Airmiles.

She said: “I have supported Progressive Personnel from the start and was flattered to be invited to work with James.

“I will be remaining in my current post at Gold Medal Travel and my work with James will be done each month in addition to my full time role at Gold Medal. “Progressive Personnel has grown immensely and I’m looking forward to helping manage James’ team so they can develop too.

“I will be looking at improving productivity to boost the profits of the company and playing the existing strengths of his team.

“I will also be looking at cost control and managing the budget to increase profitability. “James has been very particular about who he recruits and has built up an excellent reputation by providing a personal service with staff who are passionate about what they do. “James and I have the same work ethic and I think it will benefit us both to have a sounding board for ideas. “I have used Progressive Personnel frequently since their entrance to the market and have always been very impressed with the service and I am looking forward to improving this further.” James said: “We are delighted to have Bev on board. She has given me invaluable advice since setting up Progressive Personnel.

“She has a great understanding of the travel industry and financial and operations experience too which will be an asset to Progressive Personnel.”

Oct 2007

AWARD WINNING WEB-SITE

PROGRESSIVE Personnel is proud to announce they have won the Travelmole award for Best Recruitment Website.

Travelmole users picked their favorite sites and the top three were then judged by a panel of industry experts, with Progressive Personnel emerging as the winner.

Richard Cohen collected the award, a glass mole, at a ceremony at the Canadian High Commission in London.

James Roberts, Progressive Personnel founder, said: "We are delighted to have won this award. The site is clearly a hit with both candidates and clients.

"We put a lot of research into what people wanted from a recruitment site and it has paid off with this recognition.

"We are committed to improving the site further and are delighted to be seen as a leader in this field."

June 2007

ZOE Aspin has joined Progressive Personnel as an account manager

The 40-year-old from Didsbury, Manchester, will help the team deal with their growing client base and cultivate new accounts.

Zoe worked as a customer service manager for STA Travel UK before joining Progressive Personnel. She will be based in the Manchester office and will manage a portfolio of leisure accounts. Progressive Personnel Director and Owner James Roberts said: "We're delighted to welcome Zoe to the team. She is focused on delivering excellent customer service and this will be a great asset to our clients."

May 2007

PROGRESSIVE Personnel’s revamped website has been short-listed for a top industry award

Readers of news site Travelmole.com nominated Progressive Personnel for Best Recruitment site and the winner is due to be announced on May 24th.

The site went live in February 2007 after an extensive revamp and traffic has increased dramatically. It is updated with new jobs daily and members can enroll to receive job alert e-mail updates as suitable vacancies go online.

Market research revealed that users found the website to be straightforward and easier to user than other online recruitment agencies.

Progressive Personnel Director and Owner James Roberts said: “More and more candidates are searching for jobs online.

“We recognize that it is vital that we invest in the site and continue to develop it to meet the needs of candidates and clients.

“This nomination is a credit to our hardworking team and the marketing agencies that have assisted us and we are thrilled with this recognition.”

May 2007

RICHARD COHEN JOINS PROGRESSIVE PERSONNEL

TRAVEL industry recruitment specialist Progressive Personnel is proud to announce that Richard Cohen has joined the team. Richard, 37, was formerly Commercial Director for Travelocity Business, and held a senior management post at Total Stay. He has worked in recruitment for five years. Richard joins Progressive Personnel as Account Manager, covering the UK and Ireland. Progressive Personnel founder James Roberts said: "I'm delighted to have Richard on board. His wealth of recruitment experience and excellent knowledge of the travel industry will be a great asset to our candidates."

Progressive Personnel was established in 2005 by James Roberts, who previously worked in travel recruitment for a number of years and prior to that worked in the travel industry, including 4 years with British Airways as a regional business manager. The company has offices in Manchester and London and specialises in helping people in the travel industry to advance their careers. Vacancy numbers have more than doubled since January 2006.

Monday 29 January 2007

REF: RS/01

WEBSITE RE-LAUNCH

A RECRUITMENT company specialising in helping people in the travel industry to advance their careers has re-launched its website.

Progressive Personnel was established in 2005 by James Roberts, who worked in travel recruitment for a number of years and prior to that worked in various posts in the travel industry; including 4 years with British Airways as a regional business manager. His experience meant that he recognised the need for an efficient recruitment service for individuals wishing to progress their career within the travel sector. Since then the company, which has offices in Manchester and London, has placed hundreds of successful candidates in posts with established travel businesses nationwide. James has recently expanded his team, with the appointment of Richard Cohen, formerly Commercial Director for Travelocity Business, to cope with increasing demand – vacancy numbers have more than doubled since January 2006.

The new website has been designed to make the recruitment process more convenient and efficient for candidates. Candidates can now carry out more specific searches on job type and location as well as being able to register for ‘jobs by email’. James, 31, explained: "I am extremely pleased with the site. I hope candidates will find it informative and easy to use. It means they can search for vacancies round the clock. "It also enables us to let candidates know about suitable jobs straight away and contact us with any queries they may have and clients can post vacancies on there whenever they arise."

01 February 2007

REF: RS/02