An Oldham-based business finance firm has launched its own training academy in a bid to attract new talent to the industry.
PMD Business Finance, based at Howarth Court, officially launched its Accelerate programme this summer, as part of the firm’s expansion plans.
Managing director, Peter Dobson, said: “PMD is one of the fastest growing business finance intermediaries in the UK and one of the largest brokers in the country. We have seen rapid and exciting growth in the business and now we want to attract fresh and young talent to join our team.
“The Accelerate programme has been in the pipeline for a while, but we wanted to make sure that the time was right to launch. PMD has expanded massively over the last few years, and this year also saw the launch of our new invoice finance division. Our aim is to use this programme to develop ambitious people who are motivated to join our dynamic sales team and enjoy a rewarding and successful career.”
Successful applicants will undergo a structured training and development programme, with potential to join the team as a business development executive and progress through to business development director status within three years.
Peter added: “The most important qualities for us is that the people we hire have a strong work ethic, are self-motivated and ambitious. Previous sales experience is required, but finance sales experience is not essential.”
Over the last year, PMD Business Finance has arranged 2,516 deals, lending £108million. In Manchester and Greater Manchester, the firm has supported 256 SME businesses (of which, 34 were start-ups), accessing £21.5million. PMD also arranged £6.2million of EFG (Enterprise Finance Guarantee) funding.
As part of its expansion, PMD moved offices to a larger space at Howarth Court in Oldham in order to house its rising 30+ staff count, which has grown from just eight staff members when the business was founded in 2010. This year, the firm has also introduced an invoice finance division, headed up by Mark Millhouse.
Peter said: “We are in the middle of big growth plans for PMD, and launching our invoice finance division earlier this year was a massive development for us. It’s already had a huge positive effect and allows us to attack the asset-based lending marketplace. We decided to launch the Accelerate programme this summer as we’re making substantial investment in hiring new sales people to join the team.”
Peter added: “As a firm, we work with businesses in a host of different industries. We currently have 75 different funding partners offering the ultimate funding panel – it’s competitive, flexible and fast. SMEs understand that there are now alternatives to traditional bank funding and these are just as competitive and can be delivered in an efficient and professional manner.”
