The Turing Trust ships 1300+ computers to schools in Kenya with support from Caroola
August 15, 2024
Andy Webster is joining Caroola Group as our new Commercial Director! We sat down with Andy to ask him a few questions about what his plans are and what he’s looking forward to the most…
What is your new job title at Caroola and when are you starting with us?
My new role is Commercial Director and I’m starting with the team officially on Monday 6th January 2025.
What will your role focus on, and what are your main responsibilities?
My role is to support the next phase of the brand’s growth journey by ensuring the correct strategies are created and implemented, alongside developing the broader group value proposition.
My main responsibilities will be two-fold; first – to manage, coach and guide an already competent and successful Business Development team. Secondly, I’ll be making a significant contribution to the success and development of what is already a strong and experienced Senior Leadership Team, helping deliver on our motto of ‘what we say we will do, we do’.
Could you share a bit about your career background?
I’ve worked in the ‘Intermediary’ sector for 20 years now, starting out as a Business Development Manager selling Umbrella and Limited Company solutions to UK recruitment businesses and Managed Service Providers (MSPs).
Over the years, my interest has expanded to include a deeper understanding of the legislative landscape—such as IR35, Off-Payroll, T&S Legislation, and MSC Legislation—which introduces risks and responsibilities for all stakeholders in the UK contingent labour supply chain.
More recently, I’ve had the unique opportunity to engage with and gain insight into the challenges faced by end-client organisations. From this, I’ve been able to help create, deploy, and manage a value proposition that successfully addresses these challenges.
What attracted you to joining Caroola Group?
I’ve always known of and admired Caroola Group and Parasol from afar, recognising its unenviable reputation in the market for compliance, excellent service and being ‘honest and credible’ in everything that they do. What attracted me to joining was the journey the business is currently on and its aspiration for significant growth and increased market share over the coming years.
Plus, it’s the genuine opportunity to work with who I would call ‘the dream team’. Ashley Oliver, Group Sales Director, who I’ve known for 15 years in industry but never quite managed to work with (until now). Plus Chris Bloor, Director of Compliance, who I worked with for seven amazing years at Brookson. We’ve stayed in touch over recent years, and he is one of the ‘good eggs’ in the industry so I’m keen to be working with him again. Finally, the opportunity to work with Chief Operating Officer Steve Wortley again was just too hard to refuse. Steve is a great leader and an inspiration, so it was a quick decision to say ‘Yes’.
Finally, what are you looking forward to most?
I’m really looking forward to rolling my sleeves up and cracking on. There are some significant and exciting business transformation projects expected throughout 2025, of which will add further competitive advantage to the Caroola Group value proposition. I can’t wait to get to know my peers on SLT and my immediate direct reports, understand what makes them succeed in their roles and how best I can help them achieve their personal and business goals.