Network Marketing MD Jonathan Hirst and Manchester Manager Jonathan Robinson attend the latest APSCo event 'Mergers and Acquisitions Round Table Discussion' hosted by Squire Patton Boggs. The Association of Professional Staffing Companies, most commonly known as APSCo, is a group that focuses on providing the latest news and trends in the staffing and recruitment world and provides support to its members, holding regular events and offering training, development and thought leadership. The members meeting was held in three locations, London, Manchester and Birmingham with live video conference links between the locations. Kirsty Sandwell from Baker Tilley provided food for thought and the individual locations then split up to provide expert advice and guidance in a round table format. Jonathan took the stage as the only recruiter and 1/4 of the Manchester panel alongside Giles Chester (Partner, Squire Patton Boggs), Peter Collins (Director Access to Finance, Fast Forward Growth Ltd) and Simon Kite (Partner, Saffery Champness).

The questions were varied and responses from the panel swung from legal and accountancy advice to strategy, planning and real life anecdotes of experiences in the acquisitions field.  Jonathan Hirst commented, "SPG were great hosts and we had some really interesting questions from recruitment business owners from the region. Whilst planning a sale is really important and we discussed that quite a bit, many in the room were interested in the real value of their businesses and what a sale might look like - which is understandable!" Jonathan Robinson commented, "A really interesting afternoon at my first APSCO meeting. Some great tips for recruitment business owners looking to sell; but actually some great tips on how your business should operate anyway. Succession, planning, processes; all need to be in place whether you are looking to sell or not".