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| Leader of Vision & Values |
| Claire’s entrepreneurial flair first emerged in her school days when, aged fifteen, she illicitly ran an ear-piercing business in the girls’ toilets! These days her business is legit, but her sense of adventure and eagerness to break the rules hasn’t changed a bit. In fact, Claire shatters every ‘recruitment myth’ in the way she runs Stopgap. Thanks to our guiding principles - integrity, passion, collaboration, daring and agility - the spirit on which Stopgap was founded now runs through everything we do. Claire’s biggest achievement to-date is having a good idea eighteen years ago and gradually turning it into one of the best-loved names in recruitment. Claire hates queueing (which could be seen as a metaphor for her life) and loves the Stopgap social events, her favourite to-date being the boys dressing up as the Spice Girls for her hen party! When she’s not steering her surrogate family here at Stopgap, Claire can be found with her family at home, beating the pros at golf, horse riding and enjoying good food and wine. Willing to try anything, Claire insists there’s no food she doesn’t like, which means plenty of great food at socials and more cake in the office than we know what to do with. Just another perk of Stopgap life! |
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| Operations Director |
| Jacqueline is the embodiment of latin spirit. When she’s not dancing the Argentine Tango, she’s jetting off to Buenos Aires, which is her favourite city! It’s a tight competition for first place, as Jacqueline loves to travel. She’s often off on exciting trips to obscure locations, the Atacama Desert, Namibia and Galapagos, to name a few. Jacqueline’s hobbies range from the safe – gardening in her allotment, to the thrilling: diving! In the office, we prefer the former, as it keeps us in fresh fruit and veg! When she has a spare moment, Jacqueline loves spending time with her two cats, or ‘moggies’ as she fondly calls them, makes her own clothes, and of course works hard at finding people their dream jobs! |
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| Head Receptionist |
| Ann is the epitome of the Stopgap spirit. She is always up for a new adventure and even though she hadn't ridden a bicycle for many years, she took part in a Stopgap cycling challenge from Mount Kenya to Lake Victoria in Africa! Always the embodiment of glamour (she loves her jewellery), Ann always gives our clients and candidates a warm welcome and has done so for fifteen years. In her spare time Ann keeps fit by playing tennis and going to the gym. She enjoys holidays to exotic locations (her favourite being Cuba), and often spends hours on the Internet looking for new places to visit. When Ann’s not jet-setting around the world, she appreciates good food: just watch her eyes light up when you describe a good meal you've had recently! Her son, Oliver, shares her interest and has mastered many culinary skills so her evenings are spent with Oliver and her partner Ken being waited on! |
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| Receptionist |
| Always smiley, happy and well-groomed, Sally’s one of the first people you’ll see when you walk into our offices, which means you’re guaranteed a warm welcome! Sally’s a closet writer of short stories and, having had such a fascinating life so far, it makes perfect sense to turn it all into beautiful prose! Sally’s skinny-dipped with dolphins in Florida and has too much fun in her life to even need a television. You’re more likely to find Sally curled up with a good book than watching trash TV! Sally has a lifelong love affair with lipstick and lists it amongst the most important things in her life (after her husband, of course!). It’s not all lipsticks and literature though, Sally recently overcame her childhood fear of cycling on a Stopgap ‘away day’ and hasn’t stopped since – she now cycles to work every day! Sally’s pretty laid back (unless you’re serving her peas or coconut – yuck!) and loves taking her dog for long walks, practicing yoga and going wild swimming in beautiful natural areas. |
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| Employee Relationship Manager |
| Described as fun, caring, generous, thoughtful and just a little bit crazy......that's our Ro! All the qualities that make up the perfect Employee Relationship Manager, so it’s no wonder everyone at Stopgap is always smiling. Ro loves pilates, walking, swimming and exploring new places which allows her to indulge in her other loves of watching rugby, eating out and drinking pints without feeling guilty! A country girl at heart, Ro originally hails from Devon and loves to return home for wet and windy walks on the coast, sitting on the beach in the sunshine and visiting her family. Although Ro enjoys the finer things, like good food and wine (and who doesn’t?), she’s just as happy with a Strongbow in hand at the end of a long week, enjoying the banter with the second floor crew. |
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| Search & Information Manager |
| CP has been here an incredible twelve years! CP was dreamed up as another name for Clare in order to differentiate her from Claire the Leader of Vision and Values - and it caught on. CP has spent her time balancing working at Stopgap as our fabulous researcher with bringing up two teenage boys in Queen's Park, North London. She joined the company after spending several years living the good life in France and travelling around the world. Outside work she is brimming with culture, and regularly frequents the theatre, cinema and art exhibitions. Swimming is about the only exercise she will contemplate. However, she really enjoyed the Stopgap ‘17 for 17’ sponsored walk, raising money for charity on our 17th birthday, in spite of coming in last with a couple of other stragglers (due to a lot 'taking in the scenery' along the way). They got a terrific welcome in The Strand when they finally turned up! |
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| Business Insight Manager |
| Paulo is one of our long and loyals. He has been with Stopgap for over 10 years now, working his way up from within the Finance department through to his current role as Business Insight Manager. He loves his football (a lot – believe us) and can often be found watching his favourite team, Chelsea, playing at Stamford Bridge. With football being an expensive sport to follow, however, he can be found more frequently pacing back and forward in front of Sky Sports, cheering on his team (quite often in fluent Portuguese) and soaking in the atmosphere. Watching football with Paulo feels like actually being at the game as he has more enthusiasm than a whole crowd of fans! When he’s not a spectator, Paulo enjoys playing football and cricket on – as well as igniting football-related debates in the office. |
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| Advertising & Copywriting Executive |
| Joining Stopgap as the Copywriter, Adam likes to write. Which is good really, otherwise he’d be pretty rubbish at his job! Ranging from screenwriting and short stories to limericks and jokes, Adam will be making it big one day with “Marketing Recruitment: The Movie.” Imbued with a friendly nature and a wicked sense of humour, Adam is most happy when he can chat away and make people laugh. Like David Brent, he considers himself “an entertainer.” Thankfully though Adam’s not nearly as cringe worthy. But then we haven’t seen him dance… As the hybrid offspring of a Lancastrian and a Norwegian, Adam has spent many holidays traveling to Norway, cross country skiing in the winter and trekking through the forests and swimming in the fjords and mountain rivers during the summer. He has traveled to various parts of the world meeting many interesting people and has lots of interesting tales to tell. His ambitions include one day swimming the channel and learning how to iron properly! |
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| PSL Manager |
| Our resident rock star, Ian has been playing drums since he was 12, plays guitar and has just finished recording his new album. Ian’s creativity knows no limit, having also written three screenplays and co-directed ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ in a Welsh wood! He’s worked in Luxembourg and Milan, clocking up over 180 flights in between starring in a Littlewood’s TV commercial as well as a Dave Stewart pop video! Despite all of these glamorous activities, Ian still finds time to relax and enjoys great films, good French red wine and a nice old cup of tea! |
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| Credit Controller |
| Julia’s legendary wit and sense of humour keeps the finance office chuckling all day. If all other comedy fails, Julia can actually breakdance (well, she can do ‘the caterpillar’… sort of), much to everybody’s amusement. Julia’s talents are endless – she can do everything, from gardening to putting her legs behind her head! As well as being bendy, Julia is also very down-to-earth and loyal and enjoys working and interacting with the different characters in our office. Julia can often be found feeding the birds in her garden, but she’s not one to keep her hands dirty for long. Her obsession with clothes, shoes and make-up knows no bounds. Jet-setting Julia’s always off on exciting holidays, perhaps explaining her affinity with birds, migrating to hotter climates! Out of the office, Julia’s a regular party gal (dinner parties more than all-night raves these days). She loves supporting Ferrari in Formula 1 and spending time with her family and friends. Oh, and her beloved cat, William! |
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| Finance Manager |
| Katy’s a good girl at heart! Never in trouble at school, she’s a model employee here at Stopgap too. Katy’s had one little slip up, though: not many people know that Katy once shared a slow dance with Les Dennis! Now over her brush with fame, Katy’s happy hanging out with her family, or keeping fit by swimming and running. She even ran a marathon – now that’s commitment! Katy has a “wicked sense of humour” about most things, but can’t stand ghost trains, people blowing up balloons near her or uncombed eyebrows! Katy’s much more comfortable down the pub with her friends. |
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| Credit Controller |
| Paul fits right into Stopgap’s ‘work hard, play hard’ philosophy and quickly bonded over his team on his first sunny Friday pub session. He’s not looked back since! Paul is funny, charming and genuine, a rare combination, and owns a genuine DJing dog (well, he woofs along to grime and dubstep). This is perfect for Paul, as his talented canine friend combines his love of music with his dog-training abilities! In fact, the most important things in Paul’s life are music, alcohol and rugby – when he’s not skiing in Switzerland, hiking in the Cotswolds or trying to conquer his fear of heights by reverse bungee-jumping! Phew! Paul’s pet peeve is intolerance to fellow man and dog (with an emphasis on the dog), but befriend him and you’ll get to taste his thirty-two spice ramen… if you dare! |
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| Payroll Manager |
| Sue may be the only respectable grown-up we know with an undying love for Hello Kitty! She’s often caught sneaking illicitly bought accessories into the office after a lunchtime spree. During our Brighton ‘away day’ Sue was the “sound guy” as she prefers being behind the camera to being in front of it. Don’t be fooled though, she’s no blushing wallflower. With one brown-haired parent and one blonde parent, Sue ended up with blonde eyebrows and brown hair – and, as a result, has become an expert in eyebrow dye! Sue has a genuine phobia of mushrooms (they squeak when you cut them) but if you’re cooking them nearby, she won’t smell them. She rarely has a sense of smell. Occasionally it comes back, temporarily, in time for a quick perfume shop. When she’s not dishing out our pay (making her a very popular lady in the office) Sue’s spending time with her family, walking in the New Forest or glued to Desperate Housewives. Sue loves the chilled out atmosphere here at Stopgap, especially after work drinks with her colleagues. |
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| IT Manager |
| With a CV like John’s, you’d be forgiven for mistaking him for an international spy! John was born in South Africa, grew up in Saudia Arabia, went to university in the USA and has finally ended up in leafy Surrey. Not only is he a master of all things technical, but John’s also been a licensed pilot since he was seventeen. It’s safe to say John’s retired from his career as a secret agent (or so he’d have us think). He’s now on hand to make sure all office gadgets are in full working order... and that we know how to use them! These days, John can be found in his kitchen whipping up culinary delights, watching Formula 1, going on long walks and bike rides and hanging out with his menagerie (two cats and a snake). |
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| IT Assistant |
| James calls himself a geek, but as far as gadgets go, he could change his last name to ‘Bond’ and it would be fitting! James owns half of the Apple store, and that’s not just our office equipment! Instantly recognisable around the office by his well-groomed moustache, James has a sausage dog called Rusty who has prompted a new venture in doggy coat design. James has a fantastic sense of adventure, and can often be seen cruising around Surrey on his black and chrome motorcycle or even driving a horse and carriage around Hampton Court at weekends! When he’s not treating us to a song (Kylie and Blondie being particular favourites), James is heavily (pun intended) into weight training and treats himself to vast quantities of sticky buns, protein shakes, waffles and other such delights throughout the day – making him the envy of the office with his calorific consuming abilities! |
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| Office Manager |
| Immediately before joining the Stopgap Group an incredible 13 years ago, Stephen worked in the design department of Tetra Pak the Swedish packaging company, his most well known project being the Mars Milk drink. He’s worn many hats over the years: art teacher; nightclub steward and textile designer. Stephen ran a mail order chocolate company and sold designs to Liberty, John Lewis, and Designed Flooring that received The British Council of Industrial Design Award. In fact, Stephen really has done it all, as he was once interviewed by one of the 'Muppets' when going for a production job with the show. He enjoys listening to rare and hard to find 1960’s music (and once successfully selected music for a slot on BBC Sounds of the 60’s show!), as well as reading biographies, gardening and whenever possible, days out in Brighton. He also enjoys collecting miscellaneous things! Stephen has so many wonderful memories at Stopgap, it’s no wonder he’s stayed so long! |
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| PA to Claire Owen |
| Fun-loving Lynsey is like a ray of sunshine around our office. Always on hand for a friendly chat, Lynsey has an extraordinary amount of cheer. Fresh every day from her walk into work, she loves laughing every day with the rest of the Stopgap gang, whilst sipping on her signature drink – a mug of hot water, thank you very much! Lynsey loves to cook, but admits she’s no Nigella. Never mind, what she lacks in the kitchen, she makes up in enthusiasm (and her impeccable taste in outfits). Lynsey has a penchant for sociable bites out at odd times of the day, particularly brunch and afternoon tea – how very British! Our social butterfly loves a bit of a tipple with her friends, which accounts for her bravery in trying new things – the latest being waterskiing. When she’s not working hard, Lynsey can be found hanging out with her family and friends, sitting by the river or cycling around her favourite place – Richmond. |
