We have been sitting in adjoining offices for a while, breathing the same air, hitting the same phone lines and definitely sharing the same laughs.
Two businesses, similar in outlook, but divided by a brand. Mansion House and LMA.
As you probably know, Mansion House are market leaders in the insurance recruitment market, and as a sister company to LMA under the wing of the Empresaria Group, we have always worked closely together with them.
Now, in the wake of the Brexit decision, the financial services industry needs recruiters to be on the top of their game like never before. It has become clear that if we are to continue to serve our (joint) customers as we as possible, then we will be stronger if we are together.
Hence, the Mansion House business will now be rebranded under LMA.
It might seem dramatic, and it certainly won’t be quite as dramatic as David Brent’s handling of the office merger in “The Office,” but actually it all seems remarkably sensible and mundane. We all know each other well, we want to build the best possible business that we can, and it makes sense to pool our resources, knowledge and talent to face what may be bumpy and uncertain times ahead. We live to serve our clients, and we will be able to focus on this far better if we are able to offer an enlarged scope of services.
For me, any merger is an immense learning opportunity.
Experienced managers will pick up so much from their new colleagues, the less experienced recruiters will have more examples to follow, and the atmosphere in the company will be taken up those few notches. We thrive on a challenge and there is nothing better than a group of intelligent and motivated people pushing each other to get better.
I’m sure that it won’t be without worries or tricky decisions. I am focused on putting people first and letting people find their place in what will be a new structure. LMA will never be the same again, but there is every chance that it will be far better than it ever has been.
If that isn’t the case, then I’ll get my coat.
I would like to say thank you to the team (past and present) at Mansion House for building such a fantastic business. It is with a sense of great pride that I welcome everyone to LMA - as a winner of the “Best Recruitment Business” in 2016, I am certain that they will make us even better.
In a business that is all about people, having such an influx of new people for ourselves is a massively exciting time. There will be tears, there will be laughter, and there will be a few wry smiles. That’s what tends to happen when you put people together.
Most of all, there will be passion. That is what LMA is all about, and that will never change.
