When forced to adapt its training because of Covid-19, Roc Search not only survived but thrived.

The international recruitment company created a comprehensive tuition plan for new members of staff to complete while on furlough so they could hit the ground running once lockdown ended.

The success of the lockdown scheme, which transformed the fundamentals of Roc's traditional training into a package delivered on Zoom, encouraged the company to adopt a new format for its long-running Roc Star Academy. Groups of trainees now undergo an intensive three-month programme before joining the sales floor.

Roc Search began life in the bedroom of managing director Conor Roughneen in 2007. Today it has offices in Reading, London, Manchester, Dublin, Frankfurt, New York and Austin Texas.

The founder stopped taking a salary during lockdown to reduce overheads during the pandemic, while Roc maintained employees' basic salaries and continued to pay commissions. Thank you bonuses were paid to non-sales staff to recognise their contribution to the business during a very difficult period.

Roc, which specialises in IT and engineering recruitment, has six core values: performance, excellence, passion, ambition, respect and fun. Those values form the basis of nominations for the Monthly Values Champion Awards, with staff voting for the winners.

The company is moving towards paperless offices thanks to a variety of software and its own video interviewing tool (Fidio), which reduces the need for paper CVs. Fidio is also better for the environment because it reduces the need for job candidates to travel.