Startup interview with Catherine Kennard, founder of LoveWork uk
Lovework is an entrepreneurial recruitment business, with the sole aim of connecting exceptional people to exceptional jobs within high-growth, entrepreneurial businesses and fledgling start-ups.
Lovework spend a lot of time proactively sourcing high-quality candidates. Most of the time these candidates are in employment and not actively looking to move roles. However, the opportunity to join a start-up business piques their interest. We select candidates on the basis of academic results, commercial experience, drive, passion, energy, as well as some core competencies we believe are essential to survive in a start-up, for example, adaptability, flexibility and proactivity. We then connect them to genuinely rewarding opportunities within the exciting entrepreneurial businesses we work with.
Who is your startup aimed at?
Lovework is aimed at two audiences. Firstly, the exciting, entrepreneurial businesses, seeking the very best team of people to help them become tomorrow’s success story and, secondly, bright, dynamic, entrepreneurially-minded individuals seeking greater responsibility, challenge and fulfilment than they currently draw from their blue-chip careers.
How does your startup stand out against it’s competitors?
Lovework is unique in a number of ways:
Firstly, we are the only recruitment business to specialise solely in this space. While there are job boards dedicated to entrepreneurial ventures, there is no one who proactively sources these candidates on behalf of start-up businesses. Where this gives us a real competitive edge, is that it allows us to tap into the vast pool of high-calibre employees who are not actively looking for a new role, but for whom the opportunity to do something a bit different, piques their interest.
Secondly, I believe that my start-up background gives me a unique insight into the type of candidate who will add real value to an entrepreneurial business. As a result, my searches and interviews are very targeted and relevant to the core traits I have learned are necessary to survive in a growth-stage business.
Finally, we passionately believe that the most exciting and rewarding opportunities are those in entrepreneurial businesses. This passion drives our energy and commitment to achieving the best we can and is crucial to the successes we have achieved so far.
Where did the idea for the startup come from?
I set up Lovework after identifying a need both from a bright candidate’s perspective, to find a more fulfilling role with greater responsibility and accountability, and from a fledgling start-up’s perspective to have the very best team of people in place to help them become tomorrow’s success story.
Having developed a genuine passion for a role I had stumbled on by chance, I felt inspired to help other people who, like me, may be feeling unfulfilled in their blue-chip careers, but who remain unaware of roles in start-ups or how to go about finding them. At the same time, I realised that, despite it being so key for start-ups to have the best team of people in place, they often lack the Recruitment function /budget that many of the bigger businesses have at their disposal. Further, in this high-growth and early stage environment, Managers and Directors often lack the spare time to dedicate to searching for new recruits.
What is your business background, and what got you interested in startups?
After graduating from a top UK University, I had no idea what I wanted to do.. I just knew that I did not want one of the jobs in: law, consultancy or banking that seemed to dominate our University career boards. I decided to join a FTSE 200 recruitment business on their graduate scheme. At this point, I hadn’t event considered that there might be more entrepreneurial options available.. it just seemed like the most appealing route at the time.
After a couple of years in this role, I began to feel frustrated in a big company environment. Still not knowing exactly what I wanted to do, and still not having even considered avenues in start-ups at this stage, I decided to pursue my academic interests by becoming a secondary school science teacher. I loved this role but still did not feel totally fulfilled… this time I was itching for something more commercial. It was then that I was approached by the CEO of a start-up social network, who wanted me to come on-board and head up the recruitment arm of that business, which monetized the network.
From there, I developed the bug for working in a small, high-growth, agile environment. I loved my new found autonomy and responsibility as well as the buzz of working in an environment where the priorities continuously change and where one can truly see a tangible outcome of their hard work.
What has been your biggest challenge so far as a startup owner?
I have been extremely fortunate so far in that it has been a very smooth journey and the first seven months have been more successful than I could have possibly hoped. This is thanks to some super advice, the help of some very talented people in areas where I am not so gifted (!) and some very loyal clients who continue to use Lovework and to recommend us to other entrepreneurial businesses.
In the coming year, what would you like to achieve with your business?
We’re early stage and growing organically at the moment. I have a few ideas up my sleeve for the future but, for the next year, it is to keep doing what we’re doing: connecting exceptional people to exceptional roles in entrepreneurial businesses! I absolutely love watching start-ups launch to success with my candidates at the helm. Likewise, the feedback I get from the candidates about feeling challenged and fulfilled and passionate about what they do.. it is hugely rewarding and I hope the next year sees us make even more successful matches.
If you could give one piece of advice to someone thinking about starting a business, what would it be?
You need an enormous amount of passion for what you are doing. If you are passionate about your proposition, passionate about creating a brand, culture and vision, then that’s a good place to start. The business will not always go according to plan and, without that passion, obstacles will be tricky to overcome.
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