Background
Robert Stiff was born in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in 1960, where he was brought up by his English parents. His father Peter, an officer in the British South Africa Police until 1972, is the author of The Rain Goddess.
Robert Stiff was born in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) in 1960, where he was brought up by his English parents. His father Peter, an officer in the British South Africa Police until 1972, is the author of The Rain Goddess.
The novel draws on Peter"s experiences of counter-insurgency along the Rhodesian–South African border during the 1960s and early 1970s. Robert Stiff moved to Great Britain in 1978 and enlisted in the British Army. After leaving the army, Stiff joined Prudential Assurance in 1987, working as a senior manager for 12 years before moving into healthcare recruitment.
During his six years at the company, Stiff was instrumental in increasing his sales team"s turnover from £3m to £75m per annum.
Stiff founded Team24 in Croydon in 2005. The company places doctors and nurses with healthcare providers, (General Practice surgeries, National Health Service trusts, private hospitals and private clients).
Now based in Banstead, Surrey, Team24 was ranked as the 15th fastest growing private company in the United Kingdom in 2010, in The Sunday Times Virgin Fast Track 100 Awards. The company"s turnover increased from £1m (annualised) to £13.4m between 2006 and 2009, growth of 133.97% per annum.
The company"s website receives 1000 nursing applications each month and their latest accounts show turnover to have increased to £30.2m.
Stiff and his team have developed a market leading customer management system for Team24 that has been pivotal in its success. He plans to take this product to market in the near future. In May 2011 Stiff sold Team24 to one of Britain"s largest outsourcing firms, Capita, for a sum nearing £26m.
Stiff agreed to stay on as managing director of the firm until his departure in May 2012.
Stiff is a regular motivational key note speaker on a variety of topics, including: recruitment. Management; sales; motivation.
Margins. The Internet. And e-commerce.
In 2011 Stiff became a patron of The Prince"s Trust for the south-east region by supporting young people, proving himself as one of the leading philanthropists in the region. In May 2011 Stiff placed himself and his expertise as an entrepreneur on eBay.
He decided to auction himself as a mentor to a start-up business to raise funds for The Prince"s Trust charity. Stiff announced in February 2013 articles for LondonLovesBusiness and Management Today that he was investing in a series of business ventures.
These included the successful launches of the fashion boutique and brand RBYG and an innovative pocket handkerchief business coined Hankyz.
He has also invested in property in London and an individual to set up a recruitment firm. A private members gym and a media agency are also thought to be part of Stiff"s ever increasing portfolio.
He is best known as the founder and former managing director of the leading healthcare recruitment company Team24 and is an experienced keynote speaker at industry, business and marketing conferences. The following year the company won the Fast Growth Business Awards" 2010 "Family Business of the Year" award. Tahira Herold, who hoped to create a range of ethically sourced cosmetic bags, won the auction with a sum of £2,000, with all the proceeds going to The Prince"s Trust. In 2012 he won a much coveted award as Entrepreneur of the Year at the Insider South East Dealmakers Awards.
