Our Operations Director Rob Kurton has been with Russell Taylor Group for 7 years out of it’s nearly 11 years running. We thought we would ask Rob a few questions to see what his journey has been like from his perspective.

1. Why did you move to RTG 7 years ago?
   I was increasingly aware of the company, and although a small operation at the time, I realised the only way I was going to progress my career at the rate I wanted to, I would have to move away from a larger, more ‘corporate’ environment.
    
2. What job were you doing before you became a director here?
   I started as a Divisional Manager for a division of 1 – which was just me! I grew the team fairly quickly, and was promoted to Operations Manager within 18 months of joining the company. I was made Operations Director after 2.5 years.
    
3. What is most satisfying about your job?
   Without doubt, it’s observing and experiencing the culture that we’ve developed here. Ben Russell was very clear about his vision for the company in terms of work/life balance, and how he wanted us to be very different to many of our competitors by not having rigid, KPI-centric structures in place. The end result is an engaged, loyal work force who enjoy coming to work every day. Not only that, they are delivering exceptional results without the often unnecessary pressures and disruption of constant micro-management.
    
4. Is there anything you wish you knew before you began working for RTG?
   Not really. Maybe I didn’t quite realise what a journey it would be, with so many highs and lows. However it’s all proved to be worth it as the company continues to expand and evolve at an impressive rate.
    
5. What has been your greatest challenge & how did you overcome it?
   The greatest challenge up until the last couple of years, was being able to attract the best talent to our company. Mostly due to location, but also partly due to the fact that we were smaller than many of our competitors. We now have a steady flow of experienced consultants approaching us, I believe as a direct result of our social media presence and also because of the sales efforts of our ever-expanding team of consultants.
    
6. What has been the most rewarding moment as a director?
   I think it’s actually to come, when we take 14 of our hard-working team on an all-expenses paid trip to Portugal this week. It’s really satisfying to be able to thank the team for their work, as well as to be in a position to do these things as a business.
    
7. What is your management style?
   I like to think it’s an empowering style, in the sense that I like the managers and consultants to be able to express themselves and work in a style that suits them. We don’t have manuals and handbooks of how to manage. So the emphasis is on the teams to work in a way that best suits their markets, and themselves to some extent.
    
8. What is your favourite interview question to ask? 
   How would your best friend describe you?
    
9. What motivates you?
   Being part of a successful team. Perhaps because I’ve always been involved in team sport, but there’s nothing better than succeeding as a collective and seeing your colleagues and teammates come together and deliver exceptional results for themselves and more importantly, each other.
    
10. In 3 words, how would you describe the past 7 years?
    Eventful Emotional Expansion!