Matureappointments in the Media:

  Mature FT - letter from Peter  02/07/2008 
 
 

  Daily Mail Letters  27/05/2008 
  I read with great interest today that UK entrepreneurs are increasingly relying on older workers to plug skills shortages in their businesses, according to figures released by entrepreneur think tank, the Tenon Forum.Nearly half (45 per cent) of UK owner-managers are concerned about skills shortages and many claim younger recruits are often just not up to the job. Many entrepreneurs are now looking to the previously untapped potential of older workers to plug the gap, with two thirds (66 per cent) of SME leaders agreeing that the employment of workers aged 50 plus is a good solution to skills shortages. And more than a fifth (22 per cent) of entrepreneurial businesses actually favour the hiring of older workers over college leavers as a solution to staffing problems. Maybe I was clairvoyant in 2005 when I set up www.matureaccountants.com as a result of discovering that having a good CV, being out of work AND being over 50 was not a good combination. Nearly 3 years later I now have 2,000 experienced candidates on the books many of whom have discovered that if you fall off the corporate ladder in your 40’s let alone your 50’s it’s tough to get back on at the same level and for some to get back on at all. Despite ageism being alive and well in the UK recruitment industry, I have had great success in advertising over 275 jobs in the UK and overseas, many of which I have filled, which confirms my belief that in the SME sector experience does count, and as we head into murky economic waters that remind me of the early 1990s, many businesses will need help from people that have seen it all before. In a credit crunch you need accountants with bite! Martin Lloyd-Penny  

  Martin's letter in Accountancy Age  01/12/2007 
 
 

  HR magazine    
  Read Sara Longmuir's latest letter in HR magazine here.  

  Age Discrimination   08/10/2007 
  Martin Speaks out on Age Discrimination - Accountancy Magazine - here.  

  Spirit of Enterprise Award   
 

We do it again! click image for details

STOP PRESS: Martin picks up Business Venture - Spirit of Enterprise Award 2006
 


  Martin's Letter in Accountancy Age  01/02/2007 
  I read with interest “Institutes are irrelevant say profession” 15th February. I am not sure that it is just the profession that thinks this. Exactly what does the ICAEW do for me, especially as an older member who has discovered that life does not begin at 40 if you are in the unfortunate position of being out of work? The ICAEW sees itself as providing the premier accounting qualification which is presumably why so many graduates are attracted by the Big 4 each year, but as an Institute it does nothing to help its more experienced members to find work or even to offer career counselling and support. That is why so many disillusioned members vote with their feet and resign each year. I have tried to get the ICAEW to engage with matureaccountants.com to provide a dedicated resource so that they can show that they take the problem seriously but so far it has been the dialogue of the deaf!

Martin Lloyd-Penny F.C.A.

 


  Martin's Letter in Accountancy Age   
  I read with great interest “the Age of Acceptance” (26th October) and was delighted to see that the Accountancy Age/Robert Half survey indicated less public animosity to the new Age Discrimination Laws than had been expected. However I have a number of reservations about how the Law will be implemented and interpreted, not least because we are becoming an increasingly litigious society, following in the footsteps of the USA. As you reported there is a dearth of accountants in the UK which is ironic when I see on a daily basis the skills and experience of my 400 candidates that in some cases will never be used again –these are typically people in their 40s and 50s who have another 20 years left in the tank. With so much potential on offer why do we need to go overseas to plug the gap? However there are signs that maybe it is not all doom and gloom as in the last week alone matureaccountants.com has found full-time, well-paid and interesting work for 3 Accountants who have a combined age of 162, including 2 who had been out of work for over a year. Maybe the Act is having the appropriate effect.

Regards

Martin Lloyd-Penny F.C.A 


  Martin's Letter in Accountancy Age  12/12/2006 
  When I entered the Accountancy profession in the 1970’s nobody told me that there would be a correlation between advancing years and declining earning power, because in those days it wasn’t an issue. However running a recruitment business with the name matureaccountants.com has really opened my eyes to the joys of being an “older” accountant in the UK in the 21st century and the economic realities of life.

It is quite interesting that my daughter who has just started a 3 year training contract with one of the Big 4 in London is earning £25,000 a year plus an attractive range of benefits and is likely to have doubled her salary by the time she qualifies at the tender age of 25 with no commercial experience.

This week I advertised a job in London at £25,000 a year for an accountant in a property company and I received 15 applications all from experienced and in the most cases qualified accountants. And what did they all have in common? They were all over 40 and they were all desperate for work! Perhaps it is not really the North/South divide that we should worry about any more.

I wonder how life will be for the newly qualifieds of 2009 in 25 years time, by which time the Government will hopefully have allowed me to retire.

Martin Lloyd-Penn


  MATURE TIMES   
  Martin in MATURE TIMES: click to view  

  Telegraph  24/10/2006 
 

Martin in the Telegraph after the Saga Award: click to view

 

  People in the NEWS   20/10/2006 
 

People in the NEWS - Accountancy Magazine - view here

 

  BBC Wales    
 

Martin takes part in BBC Wales programme on the Age Discrimination Act: view

 

  Letter in Accountancy    
 

Martin's Letter in Accountancy magazine: "The Law is an Ass" : view

 

  Letter: Age of unreason: Independent on Sunday - Martin Lloyd-Penny  06/08/2006 
  I experienced workplace ageism when I reached 50. So I decided to fight back. I set up an online recruitment service (matureaccountants.com), and have a database of hundreds of experienced people, many struggling to find work. Now I learn I could be accused of discriminating against younger people because I use the word "mature", and I should not specify experience ("You can be ageist and not know it", Business, 30 July). Total madness. Martin Lloyd-Penny NOTTINGHAM 

  Letter in ACCOUNTANCY   
  Better with age Sir . I refer to the interview with Martin Lloyd-Penny of Mature Accountants (Matureaccountants.com) in last November.s edition, p38.The content struck a chord with me, given that at the age of 57, I am finding it harder to find work.This applies to interim as well as full-time work. Martin spoke a lot of sense and I registered with him not long afterwards. His philosophy mirrored my own experience in several respects.Although I am still in good health and still comparatively young, I am treated like a social pariah by many (but not all, I would emphasise) recruitment agencies. Martin, however, is quite different. In no time, I was sent potential offers, some of which were right for me, others which were not.However, the day after I decided that I would have to chuck in the sponge and take early retirement, he arranged two interviews for interim work and I received an offer from each. Early retirement is now on hold. Sir Robert Ropner, FCA 

  Letter to The Times   
 

"A dating agency for the mature accountant" Martin's letter in the FT.

 

  Evening Post  02/05/2006 
 


EMDA: Manage Discrimination is an initiative which has been launched to inform SME employers in the East Midlands about the forthcoming legislation on age discrimination. View our CASE STUDY

 

  Manage Discrimination   
 


EMDA: Manage Discrimination is an initiative which has been launched to inform SME employers in the East Midlands about the forthcoming legislation on age discrimination. View our CASE STUDY

 

  Be Ready  11/10/2006 
 


BE READY for age legislation in October 2006
Practical help, information and case studies from AGE POSITIVE

 

  Helping hand for older accountants   
 



A job-seekers' website for mature accountants that was created as a result of an article in Accountancy Age is now finding jobs for its subscribers.
From Accountancy Age, 18 Jan 2006 Read it here..

 

  Ageism:on the sharp end.  02/12/2007 
 


Ageism:on the sharp end.
Four accountants tell Beth Holmes about their experiences of age discrimination in the jobs market.
From Accountancy Magazine. Read about it here..

 

  The start of it all - not so long ago...  03/12/2007 
  "When accountants go to seed" from Accountancy Age: - Read about it here..

 

 
News Feed
Letter in the FT
Sir, No amount of new legislation will alter attitudes among those who believe that executives suddenly become brain dead on reaching the age of 50. Fortunately, canny folk at private equity and venture capital companies have realised the value of bringing in some grey hair around the boardroom table of companies that are disappointing their shareholders. They have realised that it's worth capitalising on 30 years of quality experience by executives who have made their mistakes at somebody else's expense. More power to their elbow! Peter S. Detre, Managing Director, Mature MD Ltd,
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MATURE MD 3 SUCCESSES
Barely 5 minutes in existence and I have contracted for our first three stars to work for Enterprise Enfield. The secret is having high calibre candidates. Please recommend this site to any friends who might be interested in signing up and then loading up their CVs. Even more importantly keep an eye out for any company which could benefit from having a thoroughly experienced MD, or Chairman or NXD. They would have my undivided attention. Thanks Peter Detre Managing Director ( very mature )
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Mature workers bridge the skills gap
I read with great interest today that UK entrepreneurs are increasingly relying on older workers to plug skills shortages in their businesses, according to figures released by entrepreneur think tank, the Tenon Forum.Nearly half (45 per cent) of UK owner-managers are concerned about skills shortages and many claim younger recruits are often just not up to the job. Many entrepreneurs are now looking to the previously untapped potential of older workers to plug the gap, with two thirds (66 per cent) of SME leaders agreeing that the employment of workers aged 50 plus is a good solution to skills shortages. And more than a fifth (22 per cent) of entrepreneurial businesses actually favour the hiring of older workers over college leavers as a solution to staffing problems.
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maturemd launched
Following on from the success of Mature Accountants which was set up by Chartered Accountant Martin Lloyd-Penny in 2005, the next mature brand, MatureMD was launched in April 2008 and is being run by Peter Detre an experienced London-based CEO. MatureMD is the latest brand from Mature Appointments, following the launch of maturelawyers.com earlier this year.
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New cookie!
Not a snack but a useful tool to help those who forget their login and password. Next time you log in you can "remember" those details by clicking the box on the login page. If it doesn't work, you may find that your "cookies" have been disabled, a nasty state of affairs....
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