Business Startup

Morecambe resident, Phil Salmon had worked as a construction professional for 20 years when, in April 2009, he was made redundant following a downturn in the building industry. His first reaction was to apply for new jobs and to register with recruitment agencies; he had spent the last ten years as a construction project manager and had supervised projects worth up to £10 million, so he felt there should be plenty of opportunities for an applicant of his calibre.

However, the recession had bitten the industry very deeply and Phil found that many of his former contacts had, themselves, lost their jobs or moved into other fields. Recruitment specialists were doing little business in the sector and, likewise, were directing their attentions to more lucrative industries. So it was that after five months of searching, Phil decided to change his strategy.

“I had put in literally hundreds of applications and in all that time, I’d got just one interview,” recalls Phil. “Only the previous year, I’d been offered three different jobs but suddenly, there was nothing at all, so I started to look at self employment as an alternative solution.”

Phil’s first move was to talk his idea through with an adviser from Enterprise4All.

“My skills are in managing building projects; it’s my job to represent the client’s interests on site and to make sure that everything is done right. However, I realised that when money is tight, clients are less likely to want to employ a full time project manager because it adds to the costs.

“I thought that if people weren’t going to employ someone like me to do that full time, they might be prepared to have me come in perhaps a day a week to keep an eye on progress and make sure that corners aren’t being cut. That freelance role was the basis of my idea for the new business – Project Management Services.

“I took the idea to Enterprise4All, having been referred to them via the job centre. My adviser looked carefully at the business plan and agreed that it had the makings of a profitable business. My overheads were minimal – just a few items of office equipment and a vehicle to get me around – and the rest was just my time. We also looked at marketing issues – at the use of direct marketing, PR and the internet, for example – and armed with that, I have begun targeting local architects and other potential clients.”

“It’s really just a question of getting the message out there,” says Phil. “I want people to know that I can help them to avoid unnecessary costs and to make sure that any work they are commissioning is being done efficiently and well.

“Professionally, it’s good to be back out there getting my name known and making new contacts, and personally, it feels a lot more positive and rewarding than just signing on.”

Phil’s business is now ready to begin trading; his new company website – www.project-management-nw.co.uk - is now online, and he is concentrating his efforts on awareness-raising and tendering for projects within Lancashire and Cumbria.