LDC Top 50 2021
Tom Hopkinson
CEO
Taylor Hopkinson
“I want this to be the biggest renewable energy search and recruitment business in the world,” says Tom Hopkinson. “All over the world, net zero commitments are becoming more ambitious and governments are pushing for a transition from fossil fuels to renewables, so our growth potential is limitless.”
Tom founded Taylor Hopkinson in 2009 to supply personnel to the world’s biggest owners of wind and solar farms. The ambitious founder, who runs triathlons in his spare time, has supplied talent to work on some of the biggest green projects in the world. “I feel we’re having an impact on the biggest challenge of our time.”
I fell in love with the industry and the people and the intention to make the world a greener and better place.”
Q&A
How did the idea for Taylor Hopkinson come about?
I fell into recruitment because I needed to pay off my student debt. One day, I was driving down the M6 and saw all the big wind turbines by the side of the motorway, and thought, ‘I want to be a part of that’. In 2006, I moved to Scotland, joined a generalist, and set up their renewables recruitment team from scratch. I fell in love with the industry and the people and the intention to make the world a greener and better place. But I wanted to build an international specialist so, in 2009, I set up Taylor Hopkinson at my dining room table.
Any difficult times?
Christmas 2010, we had some contractors out but my clients were slow payers. I was down to my last £500. I could just about afford the family’s Christmas presents. That was a very low point.
How big is the international business?
The big global oil and gas players are realising they have to adapt and evolve because of the climate emergency. We are now active in 50 countries and over the next five years I want to break ground in several new markets and treble turnover to £150m.
