Wates x Candr

Stuart's relationship with Wates stretches back around four years, with several placements made before Candr was even established. So when Chloe and the team reached out, it was built on a solid foundation of trust.

They were looking for a Proposal Manager to join the residential team, which had recently restructured into a regionalised function to reflect its continued growth. The residential business had been performing strongly, the Proposals Team had grown with it, and the natural next step was to split by region — which is exactly what they did.

The first search was for a Proposal Manager covering the London geography, someone who could manage the end to end pipeline with a real focus on quality, while also being a strong writer. We found someone who, while slightly less experienced than the original brief, more than made up for it in every other way - she gelled brilliantly with the team from the start. The decision was easy, and Madeline joined as Assistant Proposal Manager for London.

A month or two later, Stuart's phone rang again - this time it was Vicky, who Stuart had actually placed into Wates Residential almost four years earlier. Now heading up the Southern region, Vicky was building out her own team and needed a Proposal Manager. They'd had a go at finding someone themselves without success, and brought Stuart in to help.

The turnaround was fast. Briefed in December, we searched for a week, shortlisted, arranged interviews just before the Christmas break, lined up a second interview for the first week back in January, and had an offer out the same day. Ally joined Wates Residential to a very warm welcome, and both Vicky and the wider team couldn't have been more pleased.

Here's what Chloe had to say about her work with Candr.

Chloe Harrison
Head of Partnerships

“Stuart is an excellent listener who quickly understands what a client truly needs from a new hire, even when requirements are described in different ways. He values feedback and clearly applies it throughout the recruitment process. We have hired two outstanding employees through Stuart, both of whom have become pivotal to the success of our bid teams. His communication is brilliant. He does exactly what he says he will, when he says he will, which is invaluable when working at pace alongside day-to-day pressures. The process was efficient, well managed, and saved us significant time and stress. What really sets Stuart apart is the quality of candidates he brings. It’s clear he is well known and trusted in the market and is seen as the go-to person when people are considering a move. I would absolutely recommend him to others!”