Spend five minutes with our Business Director, Paul Sheldrake

What is your role within Pure and Pure Executive?

I have a multifaceted role here at Pure and Pure Executive. I am a Business Director of the organisation and as well as recruiting interim senior finance roles, I also manage the Ipswich office and lead our Suffolk-based team.

What area of recruitment do you specialise in?

I’m currently specialising in recruiting senior, interim finance roles. This is a recent change, as I had spent the last five years focused on recruiting HR professionals. I decided to return to support the finance recruitment team, the specialism area I set up within Pure, because the interim market for senior finance professionals is becoming more complex. Recent economic history has shown a reliance on interim appointments during unpredictable financial climates. Not only has the recruitment market for temporary senior finance roles become busier, we are also working towards the potentially imminent IR35 changes which will impact some of the contractors, temporary workers and those looking to employ them. We are here to support organisations throughout these changes, so they can continue to benefit from the appointment of interim senior finance professionals and be assured that they are complying with the new HMRC regulations where needed.

How did you get started in recruitment?

I started my career by working for my Dad’s recruitment business. It was an eye opener having watched him run recruitment businesses since the 1980’s and gave me the chance to really understand what the industry is all about. I then moved to a national recruiter and trained in accountancy recruitment for three years, before seeing a newspaper advert announcing that Pure was opening in Ipswich. 

What are some of your biggest achievements to date at Pure?

Alongside my colleagues Scott and Jodie Woodrow, I founded Pure’s Ipswich office in 2005. That seems like a very long time ago now! I worked in the accountancy recruitment team for five years before setting up the financial services specialism within Pure, which recruits across the whole of the Eastern region. This included designing assessment centres for growing businesses, account managing some of our largest global clients and also helping to relocate teams from London to Ipswich. When I moved into a managerial role at Pure in 2015, I decided to change direction into the HR market and I have recruited opportunities at all levels within this sector, including Board appointments. Working with my colleague Ben Farrow, I designed and established Pure’s HR Development Programme, which offers leadership coaching to aspiring HR advisors.

What makes you proud to work for Pure?

I’m most proud of the charity work we deliver at Pure. Having first set up Pure’s Ipswich Charity Quiz Night 12 years ago, I still run and host the event every year. It attracts over a hundred people each time and has raised nearly £20k for local charities so far. Along with other Pure team members, I’ve also been involved in lots of other charity events including the 24-hour Three Peaks Challenge, decorating a home for a refugee family, helping to renovate a sensory garden and most recently walking across hot coals to raise money for Suffolk Mind. We organise a number of Christmas charity initiatives each year as well. The time and support that Pure allows us as individuals and teams to support local charities is fantastic and it is something that is completely embraced by all employees.