Being Accountable

We talk to Gerald Ratner a British household name and well-known businessman. He is also a name associated with one of the business world’s biggest falls from grace. Geralds inspirational journey of personal and business recovery certainly puts a new spin on 'Doing a Ratner'! Gerald Ratner took over as CEO of the family jewellery chain in the mid 80s, becoming one of Britain’s best known businessmen. He transformed it from 130 stores with sales of £13m, to a public company with 2,500 stores and sales of over £1.2bn. By 1990, Ratner’s was the world’s largest jewellery retailer with profits in excess of £120m.  Following a high profile gaffe in which he described one of the products sold in the stores as ‘total crap’, he spent 18 months trying to do damage control but was eventually forced out of the business. Gerald eventually bought and developed a health club which he sold 3 years later for £3.9m - this was the start of his comeback. He then started his online jewellery business, GeraldOnline which today is turning over some £25m and is ready to go public. In this podcast Gerald touches on success, disaster, resilience and mental health, re-invention and rising to success all over again.  Brought to you by Accountable Recruitment, our podcast series, Being Accountable, invites industry leading speakers to share their knowledge and personal journeys to enrich the lives of our network. Our series of Podcasts can also be viewed at www.beingaccountable.live At Accountable Recruitment we combine deep sector knowledge and experience with best in class recruitment and consultancy to enrich the lives of our clients our candidates and ourselves. For more information visit www.accountablerecruitment.com.

We talk to Jennifer Atkinson Co-Founder and Executive Chair at Travel Seen Limited, NED at Acai Outdoor Wear, entrepreneur, investor and advisor and former President and CEO of ITC Travel Group. Jennifer shares her story from how as Head of Marketing she stepped up to lead ITC back in 2004. Jen completely turned the business around and achieved many years of successful growth and then subsequently secured private equity investment before exiting the business in 2020.  During the pandemic Jen then focused on helping small businesses as a NED and launched an innovative new travel business in response to the growing opportunities social media presented!In this honest interview Jen talks about how the naivety of youth can be a positive thing and it can help you metaphorically jump of cliffs and take risks. Being your best self and having a balance is what’s really important. The world whispers until it roars so listening to the whispers is critical!Brought to you by Accountable Recruitment, our podcast series, Being Accountable, invites industry leading speakers from our region to share their knowledge and personal journeys to enrich the lives of our network. Our series of Podcasts can also be viewed at www.beingaccountable.live At Accountable Recruitment we combine deep sector knowledge and experience with best in class recruitment and consultancy to enrich the lives of our clients our candidates and ourselves. For more information visit www.accountablerecruitment.com.

In this episode we talk to Maggie O’Carroll, CEO and founder of The Women’s Organisation. From its beginning in 1996 to being the largest female-focused enterprise support agency in the UK, The Women’s Organisation now helps women across the UK, Europe, China and Africa.Maggie shares how £250bn is lost to the UK economy from not having enough female start-ups and how diversity in all senses is essential for growth but it’s not the only key area to focus on. All businesses should be prioritising; productivity, digitalisation, ESG and equality & diversity.In this insightful interview Maggie talks about the importance of continual learning and investing in your own development – you don’t know what don’t know! Continual improvement is essential, so you don’t let success get in the way brilliance.Brought to you by Accountable Recruitment, our podcast series, Being Accountable, invites industry leading speakers from our region to share their knowledge and personal journeys to enrich the lives of our network. Our series of Podcasts can also be viewed at www.beingaccountable.live At Accountable Recruitment we combine deep sector knowledge and experience with best in class recruitment and consultancy to enrich the lives of our clients our candidates and ourselves. For more information visit www.accountablerecruitment.com.

We talk to Kavita Basi who suffered a life-threatening Brain Haemorrhage in 2015. Following her challenging journey through near death and recovery Kavita is now an Author, Motivational speaker, Blogger, Sustainable product expert, CEO & Founder of Reflexone & Ration.l , Ambassador for the BSF, Bee Found & SameYouOrg.In 2015, after 19 years working as a Vice President for Li & Fung, jetting all over the Globe and raising a family Kavita was rushed to A&E with a life-threatening illness - a Subarachnoid Brain Haemorrhage. After 4 brain operations including the insertion of a Shunt at The Salford Royal Hospital, she amazed doctors with her recovery.Post surviving the Subarachnoid Brain Haemorrhage, Kavita is grateful to be here, alive and now experiencing life in the most positive way! She has set up her own business, Jardin Living - a sustainable, awards winning, multi-global fashion company incorporating Reflexone & Ration.l!Through sharing her story she is helping others. Kavita has written 2 books - Room 23: Surviving a Brain Haemorrhageand 23 Ways to a Happier Life. Kavita’s books are available on Amazon. Kavita shares why every moment is precious and a reminder to not take life for granted. Happiness is not a destination it’s a way of life.Brought to you by Accountable Recruitment, our podcast series, Being Accountable, invites industry leading speakers from our region to share their knowledge and personal journeys to enrich the lives of our network. Our series of Podcasts can also be viewed at www.beingaccountable.live At Accountable Recruitment we combine deep sector knowledge and experience with best in class recruitment and consultancy to enrich the lives of our clients our candidates and ourselves. For more information visit www.accountablerecruitment.com. 

In this episode we invite Emma Stoddart, CFO of ChargePoint and overall winner of the Finance Director of the Year Awards to share her journey of becoming an authentic leader through building trust, being open and showing empathy. In this episode Emma also shares her very private story of how she manages with ME and how to overcome health challenges by being brave and changing your priorities to be true to yourself.From joining an accountancy practice at 18 and starting training from A-Levels, Emma went on to achieve a much-desired Partnership at a top 5 Accountancy practice, to then leave to focus on health and then pursue a role as a CFO in industry.  Emma also talks about her appointment to the Board of Professional Liverpool and Advisory Board Member at University of Liverpool Management School and how these positions share insights, both ways, into the wider business community and connecting theory with practice.Defining your culture is a little like defining the X Factor and Emma shares how to get your culture right, you have to align your values and direction from the leadership team down. Making informed decisions by reaching out and being open to advice through good communication and surrounding yourself with great people is essential! Brought to you by Accountable Recruitment, our podcast series, Being Accountable, invites industry leading speakers from our region to share their knowledge and personal journeys to enrich the lives of our network. Our series of Podcasts can also be viewed at www.beingaccountable.live At Accountable Recruitment we combine deep sector knowledge and experience with best in class recruitment and consultancy to enrich the lives of our clients our candidates and ourselves. For more information visit www.accountablerecruitment.com.

Simon Massey invites Greg Pateras to share his story of driving personal and business growth through resilience in our second podcast – Being Accountable.In a very honest and open discussion Greg talks about both personal and business resilience, how he not only helped deliver the turnaround of household names, but as a commercial leader remodelled himself from a finance leader to a chief of operations and also a deputy CEO. Having worked for some of the most successful families in the UK Greg also shares his thoughts on how surrounding yourself with good or better people, having clarity and consistency of direction and sticking to it, and thinking up front are critical to success.Brought to you by Accountable Recruitment, our podcast series, Being Accountable, invites industry leading speakers from our region to share their knowledge and personal journeys to enrich the lives of our network. Our series of Podcasts can also be viewed at www.beingaccountable.live At Accountable Recruitment we combine deep sector knowledge and experience with best in class recruitment and consultancy to enrich the lives of our clients our candidates and ourselves. For more information visit www.accountablerecruitment.com.

In our first podcast - Being Accountable - Listen to Managing Director, Simon Massey talking to Faye Dyer, about her personal, social mobility, career journey to Managing Director of ACC Liverpool.Faye shares how you can progress by being brave, building drive and trust and most importantly bringing your whole self to work. Faye also talks about the importance of being heard and upward mentoring.Diversity in the workplace should be a priority for business leaders and employers need to find common ground and start with culture to attract talent and make a difference - don't judge a book by its cover!Brought to you by Accountable Recruitment, our podcast series, Being Accountable, invites industry leading speakers from our region to share their knowledge and personal journeys to enrich the lives of our network. At Accountable Recruitment we combine deep sector knowledge and experience with best in class recruitment and consultancy to enrich the lives of our clients our candidates and ourselves. For more information visit www.accountablerecruitment.com.