In the last issue of PES we met Adrian Pike, CEO of newly-launched company Anesco, which has rapidly become one of the leading players within the solar sector – backed by a £6 million investment, the firm has already managed some of the largest solar schemes in the UK. In part two of this dispatch from the front line of renewables entrepreneurism, Adrian explains what the future holds for the pioneering new company…
It’s fair to say that our first year in business is on target to exceed all expectations. From the beginning we aimed to enter this sector to lead it, and that’s exactly what we’re doing.
Since launching in November we’ve been rapidly growing and have already been involved in a number of substantial contract wins on large scale commercial projects, including working with a leading housing association and managing the installation of one of the largest solar roof top schemes in the country.
Getting the right team
Building a strong team has been high on our agenda since the start. Our team is growing rapidly – we currently employ over 100 people, with a further 150 expected to be recruited this year, and up to 500 more over the next three to five years. To put this into perspective, when Anesco was created in November 2010 we only had 12 staff. On top of this we are creating jobs within our supply chain and our manufacturing partners.
We’ve strengthened our senior team with the appointment of a chief financial officer, head of operations and sales director and we’ve been pleasantly surprised by the amount of strong, experienced people around. But it’s the end of the honeymoon period now, and the next stage will be moving up to a team of 150 people.
As we grow, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find individuals with any experience in the renewables sector. For instance, someone with five years’ experience is unique, one years’ experience is good and six months’ in-depth knowledge is something we have to live with.
