Winning Teams: NCI Vehicle Rescue

This week, Winning Teams turns the spotlight on one of the most dynamic success stories of the region's financial services industry.
Neil Richards-Smith with some of his 100-strong team at NCI. (1611081AM1)Neil Richards-Smith with some of his 100-strong team at NCI. (1611081AM1)
Neil Richards-Smith with some of his 100-strong team at NCI. (1611081AM1)

NCI Vehicle Rescue was founded in 2000 by two people in a loft conversion. Today it turns over around £23m and employs almost 100 staff at its Clarendon House headquarters on Station Parade in Harrogate.

And it’s still growing, says co-founder and managing director Neil Richards-Smith (far left): “Our vision is to reach turnover of just over £40m within the next five years, and we envisage our headcount growing to 150-160.

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“We invest heavily in people and we get that back. When we recruit we make sure we get people who are the right fit, who have the same thought patterns as us and who want to do well and be rewarded for it.

“We also make sure people have a good idea of their career path, so we have a very clear structure. Employees can start at level one and work their way through to level seven, before going on to management level. So if they want to earn more money, they can learn more.

“We have a lot of long-serving members who have worked their way through, and we don’t get a lot of people who leave management roles.”

He says the company’s location in central Harrogate is ideal: “We run a 24-hour call centre here and we tend to get busier when the weather’s bad, so we need people to be able to get into work no matter what. They can easily get here on foot, or by bus or train – there’s no excuse!”

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