Precise Consultants: 2021 in Review

As we head into 2022, we sat down with director and founder of Precise Consultants Peter Thompson to find out how 2021 has been for both him and the company.

 

How was this year for Precise Consultants?

 

It was busier than anticipated and exceptionally challenging but at the same time one of the best years we’ve had as a business. We managed to grow the business, we brought new people into the company, maintained our high standards, and met challenges with determination and good humour. I think if you can look back on a year like this and say that, you’ve done good.

 

What are you most grateful for this year?

 

That no-one has quit despite working harder than ever before! Our team is everything at Precise. I’ve been enormously grateful to them this year – more so than ever before. We’re very much a family and have been there for each other when times were tough. Obviously, we’ve all been going through Covid-19 and that’s been really difficult but at the start of January, my Dad passed away. Having their support meant a huge amount and I knew I could trust that they would do the right thing for our clients and freelancers.

They demonstrated as much pride for the company as I do and having that in a team is unbelievable. A lot of the team has been with us for a long time and Precise is as much their baby as mine. They’ve become standard bearers for the culture we’ve created at Precise and teach our new joiners how we do things and what the non-negotiables are.

 

How has Precise Consultants dealt with some of the big changes in the UK this year (from COVID-19 to Brexit and IR35)?

 

A lot of it comes down to stepping up to face big difficulties and challenges and communicating with our stakeholders. On IR35 – I can say confidently that we were the agency that led on the adaptation to the changes, educating clients and freelancers. Brexit – well, it’s still ongoing and I feel we’ve handled it as well as anyone could handle an unclear and changeable situation. And on Covid – every company, freelancer, client has been impacted hugely. It doesn’t seem to be going away and we’ve got to manage frustrations of clients and freelancers who want to be over it but can’t be, who are fed up with the daily restrictions and uncertainty. It staggers me how difficult these things have become, and it makes the way we lived and worked three years ago seem extremely simple.

 

What are your expectations for industry trends for 2022?

 

Having spent quite a lot of time in the last 3 months attending conferences and speaking to freelancers and clients, it’s clear that it’s going to be as busy as 2021. The offshore wind industry is going from strength to strength, becoming more global and it’s going to further push the offshore survey industry and ROV.

But as busy as it’s expected to be, one client told me they’re viewing 2022 as a warm up year for 2023 and beyond!

Obviously, offshore wind is the big one. Every time you turn on the news, there is something about climate change and what measures are needed to mitigate it and offshore wind has been identified by countries as a key part of the strategy. With COP27 coming up in 2022, the pressure will increase. That’s why we’re not only seeing increasing capacity in the UK but it’s also happening in Brazil, Spain, SE Asian market – it’s a juggernaut.

 

What are your top priorities and main challenges next year? What are Precise Consultants’ goals?

 

We are going to hire more people into the company ahead of the busier season to increase capacity. We need to do this early so that the right people are in place to maintain standards and to support our growth.

 

For our clients and freelancers, pricing will be a challenge that they’ll face and we plan to help make this as smooth as possible. With offshore wind trying to move away from government subsidy, the emphasis will be on cost reduction. But then you need to look at the skills shortage, and appreciate that in a busier industry, supply and demand will force prices in a direction that clients would prefer they didn’t go. And when you add inflation to that, people will expect to be paid more to manage the cost of living increases. Developing a sustainable pricing model is something we’ll need to work at together.

 

What word of advice would you give freelancers / clients for 2022?

 

For our clients – it’s going to be smart if you can integrate freelancers that you know into projects as early as possible, so you’ve got that relationship with them and they’re part of your planning for the year ahead.

 

And for freelancers – we expect to see increasing requirements around vaccinations coming from our clients. I know people have different opinions, but I’d recommend getting vaccinated not only for your own health and others, but also to speed up your approval process for future projects.

 

What are you excited about the most next year for Precise?

 

Settling into our new offices, finding new people and seeing how the more established team develops into leaders. One of the things I’m most proud of is the development of the team. It is fascinating to see how the people who’ve been with us for several years are able to do with new people what Adam and I did with them when they joined. We’ve had unbelievably professional superstars and they make all the difference.