How APD Communications in Hull stepped up recruitment during lockdown

Over the past year the Hull-based firm has increased its workforce by around 50 new roles and, while the Covid-19 pandemic has crippled many businesses, APD has continued to be fully operational.

APD is a supplier of software to the emergency services, public safety and control room markets and has now grown to 170 employees, based across its offices in the UK, predominantly at its head office in Hull, and a small satellite team in India.

Headcount has increased by over 30 per cent since November 2019.

The entire APD team has worked from home since the coronavirus outbreak, using tools and technology embedded within the business before the crisis hit.

The firm switched all of its employees to working from home a week before the Government announced the lockdown, with no break in operations or impact on service to customers.

Mike Isherwood, managing director of APD, said: “We’ve kept the company moving forward and continued to support our customers at a time when they need our support most.

“Our success is absolutely down to our people and their performance. They’ve done an incredible job and we’re continuing to invest in new technology and software and recruit strongly.

“We haven’t furloughed anyone, because we haven’t needed to, and our teams have adapted incredibly well. People have shifted their roles and responsibilities to support colleagues. It’s amazing to work with people who have responded so positively.”

APD is forecasting £16m turnover in the 2020/2021 financial year, compared to £6m four years ago, and completed the 2019/2020 financial year with an order book larger than its £11m turnover for that year.

Mr Isherwood attributed this growth to securing long-term contracts and upgrades for existing customers and winning new business within the UK police sector. New international customers include a major IT and communications network operator and a transport operator in the Netherlands.

In addition, APD is now delivering a major Home Office contract the company won earlier this year to develop critical software to enable blue light organisations and other public services to transition to a game-changing communications network for the UK’s emergency services.

APD says employees have remained fully engaged throughout the lockdown, helped by extensive use of online platforms such as Facebook Workplace and Microsoft Teams.

Online mental health and mindfulness sessions have been organised through the Hull and East Yorkshire branch of mental health charity Mind, while teams take virtual tea breaks together and colleagues join virtual exercise sessions to keep fit and positive.

APD also launched a company-wide initiative in which all employees were sent a packet of APD-branded sunflower seeds and encouraged to use their increased time with their families, at home and in their gardens, to take part in a competition to grow the largest plants.

The competition, organised by commercial director Rhiannon Beeson, was a throwback to a past APD tradition – started by its employees at the company’s previous premises – and was designed to help people feel a sense of togetherness whilst working apart, with employees sharing regular updates on their online platforms.

Wendy Hiley, talent attraction and engagement business partner at APD, said the level of recruitment during the lockdown period was the highest in the company’s history while the additional activities organised for employees to help them remain fully engaged with the business and colleagues, while working from home, had been a success.

She said: “To have 19 new starters in the lockdown period alone is remarkable and this has been my busiest time to date in recruitment at APD. We’ve taken on people who were facing uncertainty in their careers because of the pandemic so it has been great to be able to offer them a new start.

“The lockdown period has helped us to understand how successful working remotely can be and show we can recruit in a different way going forward, including interviewing people from the comfort of their own homes.

“I love the personal touches like the sunflowers and my daughters are helping to grow them. I was also named Employee of the Month just after we went into lockdown and received a hamper of gifts and a handwritten card, which was a lovely pick-me-up.”

The company’s recruitment process has become fully digitised, with interviews, presentations and discussions with candidates all taking place via telephone and video calls, followed by structured onboarding for new recruits.