At the beginning of the week i was lucky enough to be visited by over 300 of the staff from A4e (Most of them  - new starters at A4e). They all came to my home for my regular event called 'In conversation.'

People from several different countries all getting togther to hear my vision for A4e - the story of where the company has come from and the plans for the future laid out by Bob Martin (our Group CEO).

I told them of when I started back in 1987 - with less than zero money - and how after non stop working - late nights - scary decisons - being brave when I felt weedy - talking to anyone who would listen - hours and hours spent trying to encourage other people to join in with my plans that eventually things started to be OK. 

I then explained that OK was not good - I did not like the company I was running - I did not like what we were doing. I was not proud of the things we were doing. Oh yes we were doing what our Government customers wanted us to do - and we were brilliant at it -  but in my heart of hearts I knew that it was not what our clients wanted or needed. Our clients were  people who were suffering the hardship and self esteem crushing effects of unemployment. They wanted jobs - real jobs - not endless training courses that did not lead to jobs.

I realised that for me to continue I had to do something that felt worthwhile - that had a sense of purpose - that made a difference. That is when A4e (Action for Employment)was born. I remember the day when the tiny little team that was A4e pledged to start again - I remember when we all decided that from that day forward we would only do stuff that 'improved people's lives.'

We decided that every time we spent a quid - every contract we chased - every deal we did - every idea we dreamt up - we had to understand how it was going to improve the lives of the clients we would work with. Such a simple idea - and one that has driven A4e to where it is today.

People often ask me if all those years ago I ever imagined that I would be leading a global business that provides front line public services that proudly employs nearly 3000 people. Of course not!! Did I imagine that i wanted to put all my energy into improving people's lives and making a difference - then YES i did. 

What's more - the original vision of improving people's lives gets stronger and stronger every time someone new joins the team with their own determination to make a difference. So thank you.

And here's to the continued growth of A4e - and the chances that gives us to improve even more people's lives around the world. 

The staff that came to my house this week added to my thinking about the things we could do next. (The deluge of emails i received after the event  packed full of thank yous and ideas - were very welcome! )  So thank you - and I look forward to welcoming another 300 people next month!