Sam Spoors, the driving force behind Northumberland-based recruitment firm Talentheads, has revealed the philosophy and experiences that shaped her successful business venture. Founded in 2020, her company has grown significantly, now boasting a team of ten professionals.
From Babysitting to Business Leadership
Reflecting on her professional origins, Spoors recalled her first job wasn't in an office, but in neighbours' homes. Her first role was babysitting, for which she earned £3 per hour, plus a taxi home when needed. She vividly remembers one nerve-wracking evening babysitting for new neighbours during the Eurovision Song Contest, where a resident cat left her 'hardly moving all night'.
This was followed by a paper round in her village, an experience she credits with teaching her early lessons in responsibility and perseverance, proudly undertaken in her 'red tartan trousers'.
Building a Different Kind of Recruitment Business
Spoors established Talentheads after a career as head of talent acquisition for a large, multi-site business. Her motivation stemmed from a belief that the recruitment sector had failed to evolve. She identified a market need for more than just transactional CV submissions.
'I believe that growing businesses need more than that,' Spoors explained. 'They need the right people and the ability to retain them.' Talentheads was created to fill this gap, acting as an outsourced internal recruitment team that partners with organisations to attract, engage, and retain talent for sustainable growth.
North East Pride and Future Ambitions
The Morpeth-based founder is a passionate advocate for the North East business community, describing it as 'supportive, collaborative, and incredibly inclusive'. She stated, 'I couldn't imagine Talentheads being founded anywhere else. I am extremely proud to be a North East business founder and entrepreneur.'
Looking ahead, Spoors envisions a future where she can continue supporting others, either through charitable work where she can genuinely add value or by mentoring other business owners and leaders. Her advice for those entering the recruitment sector is to focus on adding meaningful value in a saturated market.
'Think about the so what? What value can you add and what meaningful difference can you truly make? That mindset is what sets people apart,' she advised.
On a lighter note, when asked who would play her in a film, Spoors chose Anne Hathaway, specifically referencing Hathaway's role in The Intern as resonating with her own perspective on work, family, and legacy.
