A Decade at Mantra with Kevin Nash and Nina Collis

I was out in the field with Nina on her very first day in the company. She was an impeccable brand ambassador; textbook. If this was a school she would be a prefect, because you could always rely on her. - James Buckley -

If you’re anything like me, you might occasionally struggle to remember what you did last week. (Maybe, sometimes, you might also forget what you did this morning.) If that’s the case there’s a high chance you don’t remember what life was like in 2011, either. Well, let me give you a quick rundown: The King’s Speech won Best Film at the OSCARs, Will and Kate got married at Westminster Abbey that summer and David Cameron was quietly enjoying his second year as British PM. Yes, I know, a lot’s happened since then.

2011 was also the year Kevin and Nina joined the organisation and, in June and July respectively, they both celebrated a decade at the company. Although their arrivals were only separated by a single month, they both came through the door at very different points in their lives and followed very different paths along the way. What they do have in common is that they’ve both enjoyed a huge deal of success during their time here.

I caught up with Kevin and Nina to find out what they remember of joining, how things have changed in the last ten years and what they think has kept them in the job for so long.

Hi both. First of all, congratulations on your ten years!

Nina: Thank you. It makes me feel so old saying that out loud. The other day, I told a someone that I’d been in the industry ten years, and she said, “Oh, you don’t look like it”. So I said, “Thanks, you can stay.”

Kevin: Yeah, it’s sort of scary isn’t it. It was ten years on 1st June. I remember the date because it was my nephew’s 5th birthday and he’s just turned 15!

So what was is that brought you to the company in the first place?

Nina: I actually wanted to be an actress, I loved showing off in front of people. But when I left school my mum told me, quite bluntly, that it wasn’t going to happen. She crushed my dreams quite early! But, seriously, I think she actually did me a favour. I loved science and watching CSI so when I left school I went

Kevin and Nina are both great people, who also happen to be great at the business. - James Buckley -

and did a science degree. I had a great time, studied hard and got a first class degree at the end of it, but in my fourth year we spent six months in a lab and I really didn’t enjoy that. I thrive off human interaction and the people that are in labs are normally very studious, focussed people. I just wanted to make people laugh. So when I left I felt a bit lost and decided to go travelling. I wanted to go to South America, so I tried to think of the quickest way to make enough money to get there, and sales seemed a good idea. I applied to a few different jobs and I had two interviews, one for here and one for another marketing agency. They both offered me a role but I opted for here because I was really looked after in the recruitment process. I was made to feel very special and I didn’t feel like just another number. They also really spoke about the opportunities to advance and about their goals as a company. It was clear that they were going somewhere and I’m an ambitious person so I chose here and, yeah, I never left.

Kevin: I joined as part of the sales team through an online advert like all our candidates do. I didn’t know what I was applying for to be honest, I had no real idea what the role was. I was between jobs. I had just finished working for an Interior Design company for 16 years, so I was at a bit of a crossroads. When I applied, I thought it would be a temporary thing for the summer and that I’d find something a bit more permanent. So I came like a lamb to the slaughter, not knowing much of what any of it was about. But what has really stuck in my mind, ten years later, is the conversation with one of the recruiters at the time, a woman called Gosia. She was so friendly and so helpful on the phone and the emails had such a nice tone to them that it made me come in for the appointment. I don’t know if I would have come in if it wasn’t for her.

What an absolute pleasure it has been to work with Kev for ten years. He’s one of a kind. He’s incredibly loyal and hardworking. It’s been amazing to see him develop over this time and I just hope he’s here for another ten. - Fran Colam -

What was it like starting out?

Nina: I picked up sales quite quickly and started to learn to develop a team. I did sales and team leadership for the first three and a half years and then I was moving to Swindon and Rob at RedSeven had an open position. So he sat me down and asked if I thought we could work together. So I’ve worked with RedSeven for seven of those ten years, which seems quite fitting. (I only say that to make sure Robs gets me a gift in July!) When I joined, the team was 15 in total, including Rob, and now we have four offices in Swindon, Cheltenham and Manchester. Sometimes it’s easy to take that for granted but actually, to grow that much over that period of time, it’s a huge success.

Kevin: I was pretty new to sales and it was a really steep learning curve for me. I remember we had to shadow one of the leaders for a couple of hours back then and on my first day I arrived late, so when I got into the office there was only one person there, Roddy. He took me out in Bristol and I had no idea where we were going or why I was following him—we even got on the wrong bus I think— so it was all just a bit of a disaster from my point of view. But Roddy was just about to open his own office and he was so excited and motivated about the opportunity in front of him and I found that really infectious. He was talking about his logo, about setting up his website. He was so passionate that it was impossible not to be inspired. It was really the friendliness, enthusiasm and how lively the team was that impressed me. So I stayed in sales for another two years, because I was stubborn and I wasn’t going to let it beat me, and then the position in Bristol came up and I suppose Fran headhunted me for that role, really.

Are there any particular moments in the last decade that stand out to you?

Nina: The one that comes straight to mind is the time I did a personal best in sales. I was on a week-long road-trip with a satellite team and did seven sales in the first day, which was probably three times the average. On the second day I did seven again. And on the third day I had a call with James Buckley. James is very good at using performance to drive people and he had this trip to Australia that I was desperate to go on. So he asked me how it was going and I said “What have I got to do to get on this trip then?” He said, “You’ve got to get 40”. My personal best at the time was 25 and not for a moment did I think I could do it. So on the Wednesday I did seven again and the Thursday I did seven as well. So I was on 28 going into the Friday and, who knows why, but it just felt like the easiest day of sales I had ever done. Within three hours I was on six and I just carried on. I got to 11 of the 12 I needed and we had 10 minutes left before we had to cut off for the day. There was one house left in this village and, after they said yes, I came outside and just threw all my papers up in the air.

Kevin: The travel has been the one thing for me. I’ve been to Sri Lanka, I’ve been skiing a couple of times, I’ve been to Spain. I’ve had the opportunity to really travel with the business and that’s so important to me. It means that I haven’t been stuck inside four walls for ten years but I’ve got out and seen the world and worked with the other offices as well. What I also love about the recruitment side is you never know when that next superstar is going to come through your door. It keeps it fresh and interesting all the time, you’re always looking for that next person who has got that certain something. And when that happens it’s a really good feeling.

What do you put your longevity in this business down to?

Nina: I have had a lot of support from people over the years and I don’t think it’s a case of always figuring things out by yourself in this job. Fran has been a huge support, particularly with my transition into Recruitment and Office Management, she’s always been there for me and helped me when I’ve probably wanted to give up. And she’s also helped my celebrate my successes too. Rob, as well, in moments when I lost my confidence or my performances dipped slightly and he went out his way to help me. I learned a lot from him sales-wise and he pushes me hard - which I sometimes moan about! And there’s the recruiters all over the country that I’ve called on when I’ve been looking for inspiration. Kev, too. He’s been there for me and I’ve been there for him at various points. So I’m very grateful to all those people.

'Nina has been an absolutely invaluable member of our team. She has impeccable standards, she does everything meticulously and has an incredible work ethic. She’s also one of the funniest people you will ever meet and brings a great sense of fun and humour to the office. Our team simply wouldn’t be the same without her.'

- FRAN COLAM Kevin: I think two things: first, embracing change. The business is totally different to how it was ten years ago. The clients we work with, the way we run the business, and the people we recruit are different. I think the generation we recruit today have a different mindset to the people we used to recruit. I think people want more flexibility now. Our key recruitment age-group is 18-23, and they want a lot more freedom. They want that opportunity to make their own choices and we have to reflect that in the the way we work. I think that was a difficult thing to accept to begin with. People come in and leave so you just have to enjoy the ride. You have to accept that change is good and a part of this business.

And then secondly, I think it’s the people you meet through the journey. I’ve made some great friends through working here, whether they are still in the business now or they’ve moved on to do other things, I’ve made some friends for life. And there’s still a core of people who have been with me all through this: Fran, Roddy, James, Rob and Nina. If you look at those people, they’re all very different, but I think what they have in common is that they all thrive off being around people. It’s a business that attracts people people!

How do you think you’ve changed since joining ten years ago?

Nina: I don’t know if this is because of age, but I care far more about my own opinion of myself compared to others’ now. Maybe it’s maturity, but when I was new I was very impressionable. And I wasn’t focused on my own lane. Sometimes that’s very motivating, like my rivalry with Jack who always seemed to do a little bit better than me. I think that helped me push myself, but there were other situations where, if he was doing something quicker than me, I would start to think I couldn’t do it. I doubted myself but now I can have a much more logical approach to learning new skills or whatever it is. In sport or in business or in life, we don’t all follow the same path, and I know that I just have to focus on my own game. My mentality has really been fine-tuned since being here.

Kevin: Oh, I think I’m a totally different person. The confidence this job has given me; the communication skills; the ability to stand up and deliver a presentation. You know, ten years ago that would have filled me with horror but now it’s something that I love to do. It’s just given me that confidence and I feel like this is the sort of business that everyone should experience. It’s such a sociable, people-oriented business that can take you out your comfort zone and I think that can bring out some really positive traits in a person.

- JAMES BUCKLEY -