Testimonials

Emily knows exactly the type of staff I’m looking for, I don’t even have to tell her what I want anymore she just gets on with it and delivers the type of candidate I need. I only interviewed one candidate and offered the job straight after the interview. Emily is very helpful and friendly and makes the process of recruiting someone go very smoothly, the service is great!

Barry Elmer,
Financial Controller
GAP Ltd.

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We were approached by AFR while we were advertising in the job centre. We advised at the time we did not want to use an agency due to cost but we agreed to meet Tammy to discuss this further. We had an honest conversation as to what we were looking for and whether AFR would be able to help. We did not want to be tied to any exclusivity periods as we have had issues with this in the past. This was not a problem for AFR.

The recruitment process went well. We looked at several CV’s before we arranged any interviews and Tammy always advised honestly on any concerns we might have with any suggested candidates.

All candidates were well presented and had a good knowledge of the company and the position they were being interviewed for. Tammy was not pushy and was very easy to talk to. I see no improvement needed in AFR Consulting’s recruitment service.

Claire Austin,
Accounts Team Leader
Speed Medical Examination Services

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AFR Consulting are always my first choice when a vacancy arises within my department. What I like about AFR is that they take time out to come and meet myself and my team to really understand our requirements. When they send candidates through for interview it is always obvious that they have been carefully selected in line with our requirements and that they have been well prepared for the interview. I can almost guarantee that any candidates AFR send through will be successful.

Julia McDonald,
Credit Operations Manager
Virgin Media Business

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The Team at AFR is welcoming, they provide an individual service for our recruitment needs, along with various seminars at no cost to ourselves, these are informative and light, providing an ideal networking opportunity. Being dedicated to the NW Market ensures the advise is Regionally relevant and focused.

During a highly sensitive relocation the Team worked discreetly to ensure confidentiality, providing guidance and advice without being overbearing whilst all the time ensuring we reach our goal within timescales.

AFR – Absolutely First Rate

Ruth MCrimmon,
Group Financial Services Manager
Warner Estate

I was introduced to AFR Consulting by one of the partners from our Accountants when we were looking to recruit a new Head of Finance. I met Simon Speak and Phil Scott who are two of the directors at AFR Consulting and we discussed our requirements, our company and the type of individual we would be looking to appoint. It was obvious through our conversations that they knew most of the Finance Directors in the area. As a result I decided to use AFR Consulting exclusively which avoided getting bombarded by numerous agencies all offering the same candidates. By using AFR it made it a painless process and by giving them our exclusive commitment they were able to give the assignment their full attention. We agreed an advance date for first interviews which allowed AFR time to draw up a shortlist and interview each applicant and this ensured the candidates had the personality and the skills that we required. The process worked extremely well, we were remarkably impressed by the calibre of the people we met and it was obvious AFR had been thorough in preparing each of them for interview. With the aid of AFR Consulting we have now appointed our new Head of Finance and I am extremely grateful to our accountants for referring AFR to us. Finally, I would recommend AFR consulting to any organisation who wants to ensure that they recruit the best finance staff in the market.

Jason Kenworthy,
Managing Director
SMD Group

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Hi Phil

Just thought I’d drop you a line to say really impressed with service that I received from Lee.

I saw 3 candidates from AFR and 2 from another agency and in the end would have offered the role to 2 of the candidates from AFR.

Not a bad result.

Karl Gorge,
Financial Director
Cogent SSC Limited

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I used AFR consulting as I was very impressed with the professional checks that Tammy carried out when one of our previous employees applied to join AFR. I felt that that Tammy took the time to discuss our requirements and she understood what was needed and wanted.

The quality of the candidates were off very good calibre and we found it difficult to decide on which candidate we should go for. I have never used agencies before (in fact I usually avoid them) but found Tammy’s professional and friendly approach during our first conversations about our previous employee, stuck with me when we were recruiting again, this immediately made me think of AFR to help with this.

I would definitely refer them to other contacts of mine and highly recommend them.

Kerry Stevens,
Finance Director
Flexicomms Ltd

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Andrew Webron Ltd. is a Company that prefers to work independently and therefore in the majority of situations, would not use a recruitment agency when recruiting employees. However, when seeking a Financial Director to replace the retiring incumbent, it was felt that some specialist knowledge and experience was required.

In the first instance, however, a certain consultancy was engaged without AWL being aware of the services of AFR Consulting. In the early stages, Phil did approach the company with a couple of candidates, but as the original consultancy had been engaged, these were not pursued.

It did however become apparent that that the candidates put forward by the original consulting company were some way off what had been clearly outlined. AWL is a textile manufacturing company and had specified that candidates be put forward who had a strong manufacturing background, and a maximum salary range had been also specified. None of the candidates put forward were from the manufacturing sector, and the majority were already in receipt of salaries in excess of the salary offered.

At this point the MD elected to interview one of the candidates put forward by Phil. This candidate was ultimately successful in being appointed to AWL. A second candidate, also put forward by Phil, was equally employable and AWL would have been more than happy to employ this candidate had our first choice not accepted the job.

In conclusion, therefore, AWL would certainly recommend the services of Phil Scott / AFR Consulting. Phil had a number of potential applicants who were local, in the appropriate sector, and at the specified level for our Company.

Melanie Briggs,
Human Resources
Andrew Webron Ltd

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I first came across Phil Scott and AFR back in 2004 when I was personally looking for a job and found him to be very helpful and supportive in my search for a new challenge. Subsequently Phil placed a number of my ex colleagues in suitable position around the Blackburn area.

On the basis of my past experience of Phil’s work, I asked him to source suitable candidates for my own current position as it is my intention to retire in April 2009. I also gave the same brief to two of the larger recruitment agencies to get the best spread of potential candidates.

Phil provided by far the best service and best quality candidates. The length of time he has spent recruiting in the Blackburn area and his networking skill have provided him with a large database of potential candidates at all levels and a wide knowledge of businesses in the area. He speaks to each candidate about the positions and gets their agreement to him representing them for the specific role which avoids any conflict with other agencies who provided some of the same candidates but had obviously not spoken to them. His in depth knowledge of the candidates helped to ensure that we got a shortlist of the most suitable candidates for our specific role.

I would have no hesitation in recommending Phil Scott and AFR to any business particularly in the Blackburn area based on my dealings with them.

Mike Higgins,
Finance Director
Metals UK

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AFR made the recruitment process simple and easy, giving appropriate CV’s and listening to the feedback. The communication with both me and the candidate was excellent. I will look forward to working with AFR again in the future.

Tamara Jones,
MI Technology Group Ltd

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I have used AFR for 6 years now, recruiting at qualified and above. AFR take time at the beginning of assignments to understand not only the role but also what I want from a candidate and after, they filter candidates very well only providing ones that are suitably experienced, and more importantly fit the culture of the fast paced, pressured organisation in which I work.

Tim Pedley,
VP of Finance
VC backed system design and manufacturer

I would like to thank you for your help on our recent finance vacancy. For this vacancy we used AFR and a well known national recruiter from Manchester whom we found to be extremely disappointing. Your knowledge and experience of the Lancashire area was clear to see as you totally out shone your competition.Having used several agencies from different sectors in the past it is refreshing to come into contact with someone who really knows their candidates. We took confidence in the knowledge that you had interviewed all the candidates and as a result you able to give us your professional advice on who we should meet. If I have another finance vacancy I will be definitely back in touch.

Jasper Lever,
Commercial Director
BM Furniture

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I had previously been a client of AFR Consulting and they also negotiated a competitive rate. Our requirements were well understood. Phil only sent us CVs of candidates which he felt were suitable. The quality of the candidates was high and a great deal of experience.

AFR were professional with no hard sales. I wasn’t pestered with too many phone calls and emails, and would use them again if they remain competitive.

Mrs. L. Mabbutt,
Finance Manager
MEL Chemicals

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Simon from AFR provided me with a good selection of candidates, with varying experience and abilities, but after informed discussions about the exact nature of the project a shortlist of the three most suitable candidates was created. All were of high quality and capable of doing the work required, the final choice thus proved problematic but the chosen candidate had previously carried out a similar exercise successfully so was awarded the project. The selected candidate proved to have the ideal skill-set for this particular project, good analytical skills and able to set his own agenda in how to approach & manage the problems the company was facing. His findings during this short period, and recommended improvements, will I feel ultimately assist the business going forward and reduce the risk of wide fluctuations in cost of sales. The workload involved has been carried out within the estimated time allowed, keeping the cost to the original budget.

Simon Shaw,
Financial Controller
FMP Ltd

AFR Consulting’s service was excellent. Tammy was friendly and helpful and the format of the CV’s were very clear and easy to read. The candidates provided were a perfect match.

Amanda Benham,
Sales Ledger Manager
Independent Inspections

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AFR understood our requirements very well, the criteria in terms of candidate selection and timescale met our expectations. A very good candidate was successfully placed, I wouldn’t hesitate to use AFR again- great job!

Sandra Bardsley,
HR Manager
Senator International Ltd

As one of Lancashire’s most forward thinking firms of Chartered Accountants, our practice continues to expand. Being able to recruit the best calibre employees is paramount. AFR Consulting consistently put forward the best and I have no hesitation in recommending them to fellow business owners.

Alexander Bell,
Senior Director
Studholme Bell Ltd Chartered Accountants

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I have known Phil & Simon for a number of years through the NW Society of Chartered Accountants and when my firm had a vacancy for a Qualified Accountant we had no hesitation in giving AFR a call. The candidate they provided us was first class and I am pleased to say that she is doing well and we are very grateful to AFR for their knowledge and expertise in helping our business.

John Green,
Chief Executive
Pierce Chartered Accountants

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I recently engaged AFR to help me recruit a Trainee Accountant for my growing accountancy practice. Simon was able to give me an honest assessment of the candidates he had available and as we already had a high standard of applicants from our advert he promised not to waste my time with unnecessary CV’s. I found that he listened closely to my requirements, in particular the attitude and personality required to get on well with my clients and complete the training contract. The candidate AFR submitted was well matched to our needs and sufficiently better than our other candidates to merit offering him the job. Simon was able to provide excellent references which I found re-assuring and I’m pleased to say that our new recruit is now a valued member of my team. I would certainly consider using the services of AFR Consulting again and would happily recommend them to my clients should they have a financial recruitment need.

Rob Stafford,
Director
Stafford & Co.

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We have acted as accountants for AFR Consulting for a number of years and in that time they have been responsible for hundreds of successful financial placements. They have many repeat customers and have only issued a credit note in respect of refunded fees on one occasion. This shows that over 99% of their placements are still in place and working out beyond their initial probation period. In an industry that deals with people and not numbers, it clearly demonstrates an impressive track record of getting it right.

Stuart Murray,
Accountant
Jackson Stephen LLP