When it comes to innovation, there is always cause to keep the spark alive. It is vital to foster innovation in any sector of business processes, as it is key for growth. At Oliver Sanderson, Natasha Makhijani is constantly growing with their recruiting systems and ways of working to foster creativity and innovative thinking.
Natasha Makhijani is the Founder and CEO of Oliver Sanderson. She works hard every day to keep the team motivated and engaged with the company’s vision and journey. She is a challenging, supporting, and inspiring leader. We at CIO Business World recognized her efforts and interviewed Natasha to understand her journey to success.
Below are the Highlights of the Interview:
What inspired you to pursue a career in your industry, and how did you rise to your current position as CEO?
I began my recruitment career on the Graduate Scheme at Hays. Recruitment appealed to me as I was passionate about people and enjoyed the fast-paced world of sales. Growing up in a diverse neighbourhood, I wanted to help people like me and my friends to succeed and gain opportunities to progress in their careers. Fast-tracked into management roles, I achieved four promotions in four years and took a team from billing £10,000 to £80,000 a month.
From Hays I then moved to Michael Page, where I worked on a hybrid desk across permanent and interim senior leadership roles. I was given responsibility for growing Michael Page’s Public Sector division from its offices in London and soon became the company’s number one biller in HR across the UK. Having already set up executive desks at both Hays and Michael Page, I decided to launch my own business. I left a great job, sold my car to consolidate my savings, and set up an office in the dining room. Oliver Sanderson began as one lady and a laptop but has since grown into an international business at the cutting edge of executive search.
As a female CEO, what strategies have you used to overcome gender-related challenges in your career journey?
Being an Asian woman CEO in the recruitment industry has not been easy, but I’ve always seen it as a strength. I have always been unique, slightly different. Most importantly, I have had to be
extremely assertive to get to where I am today. People used to do a double take when I walked into the boardroom, but perceptions are beginning to change.
When I started my career, I was often the only woman in the room. I had to advocate for myself and be vocal about my achievements and ambitions. Continuously learning and pushing myself to succeed, eventually my results spoke for themselves, and I was taken seriously. It was also important to challenge stereotypes and biases and not be afraid to speak up for myself.
Can you highlight a significant achievement or turning point that played a pivotal role in your career trajectory?
I was honoured to be invited to feature in the 2022 Platinum Jubilee Pageant Commemorative Album, in a section on aligned organisations. We were selected for our “transformational contribution” to the sphere of business. It is one of my proudest achievements. Being a British Asian, my life has been shaped by our Royal Family. I was always inspired by the late Queen Elizabeth II in particular – her values, her global presence, her exceptional work ethic, and the way that she has always upheld service, even in the most challenging circumstances.
Being recognised in this way, and with other awards over the last few years, has helped Oliver Sanderson to grow and win new clients. Having prestigious awards and endorsement behind you really improves credibility and reputation.
How do you foster a culture of innovation and continuous improvement within your company?
Innovation is the key to business growth, and it is vital to foster innovation through suitable business processes. At Oliver Sanderson we are constantly learning, and we have systems and ways of working in place to foster creativity and innovative thinking.
Our team has driven our growth from day one, and I work hard every day to keep my team motivated and engaged with our vision and our journey. As a leader, it is vital that I am always challenging, supporting, and inspiring them. We set monthly and annual targets to hit for our team across a number of areas, from sales to social media engagement. But we also support each other, understanding that growth isn’t always linear, and we sometimes learn more from failure than from success.
What strategies do you employ to foster open communication and collaboration among your team and departments?
I believe that the most effective way to foster open communication among my team is to lead by example and be open with them. This sets the precedent for communication which goes both ways.
We hold workshops to discuss the company values and how we can live and embody them. Ensuring that all employees understand the company’s mission, vision, and overarching goals is vital to collaboration as it provides a common purpose and helps teams align their efforts. It also means that employees can recognise behaviour that goes against these values and they feel empowered to address the issue.
Finally, active listening is important as a business leader. This means giving full attention, asking clarifying questions, and showing empathy. This ensures that team members feel heard and valued, and they are then more comfortable sharing their views.
How do you align your company’s values and goals with societal and environmental concerns?
The societal issue that has always been most important to me, growing up as an Asian girl in a diverse neighbourhood, is Equity, Diversity & Inclusion. We are champions of ED&I in recruitment and across the wider business world, and we have made a real difference through our placements, our advocacy, our consultancy projects, and a wide range of speaking engagements, panel discussions, and awards programmes.
The core of our business is recruitment, and we are in a unique position to help our clients become more diverse and inclusive.
For our clients, we adopt research-led practices to ensure more diverse shortlists and a more inclusive recruitment process, harnessing new technology to deliver better results. Snapp CV, our in-house digital platform, is the world’s first voice technology-enabled mobile job board with Amazon Alexa integration. We are breaking down barriers and helping our clients discover the next generation of business leaders, with masterclasses, networking sessions, buddy programmes, and placements organised through the app, with a focus on D&I.
Last year we took our D&I work to the next level, launching a charity – the Black Leadership Advisory Council – alongside three co-founders who are all Black HR Directors. Through this initiative, we aim to accelerate the development of Emerging Black Leaders, particularly from deprived backgrounds.
Looking ahead, what are your aspirations and goals for both your company and your personal leadership journey?
Over the next 12 months, a key objective of mine is to continue the legacy of the company’s co-founder, my late husband Akash, who sadly passed away last year. I have been committed to doing justice to his ideas and legacy and have worked closely with the team to ensure that we stay true to our core values and mission.
Looking ahead, I am focused on delivering in the US markets and am exploring the possibility of opening an arm in the US. Snapp, the digital platform that forms part of the Oliver Sanderson Group, is currently in talks with partners about obtaining series A funding and phase 2 of an AI project, automating more aspects of the platform and developing the fintech side. Meanwhile, a major project over the last 18 months has been creating the Snapp roadmap, which targets expansion to the USA and India.
Visit Now: Natasha Makhijani – Oliver Sanderson Group PLC – LinkedIn
