The winner of the Expense Reduction Analysts' Consultant of the Year for 2009 award has been announced. Andrew Brackenbury, who won the award, said: "It is good to be recognised amongst your peers. I was delighted, surprised and proud to be announced as the winner of this award, bearing in mind the previous recipients and the fact that I have been in the network for less than three years. I believe it is a reflection both of the success that I have had in running my business within the brand and, just as importantly, of the contribution that I make back to the group.

"The whole spirit of Expense Reduction Analysts is one of openness and trust. If you need help or assistance, the help is there - whether it comes from a fellow associate or from Group Office. You help people yourself, because you know that when you need it, they will help you in return."

Prior to joining Expense Reduction Analysts, Andrew had been working in Management Consultancy for eight years looking after the implementation of business systems for some major UK companies. His latter role had been as an Account Director, managing client relationships. "After eight years, I felt that I needed a change and wanted something that gave me the same level of flexibility. Ultimately, I decided that working for myself would provide the best method of achieving that independence. I considered buying an existing business and I considered franchising. The attractive element of the franchising route was that the business concept had been proven and therefore it came down to my abilities to run that franchise myself.

"I had done some initial research of the opportunities available and fortunately there was a franchising exhibition at the NEC in Birmingham in November 2005, and the Expense Reduction Analysts stand was the first thing I saw. I spent a long time there talking with Tony Wilcock and later met several times with John Allison. I realised that Expense Reduction Analysts offered exactly the profile of career I wanted; my existing skill-set of account management and consultancy translated extremely well into the Expense Reduction Analysts world; it was really a bit of a no-brainer!"

Since Andrew launched his business it has grown steadily, he added: "It has been hard work, but I haven't looked back. My business has grown organically and strongly. I am now at a point where I am thinking about the next stage, and the possibilities are extremely exciting.

"I have been talking with Graeme McKinnon and Sue Tennant, and they have been monitoring me on the direction that my business should take in the future. In addition, four fellow client acquirers and I have taken control of our own marketing, with the full support of Group Office, and we have recruited our own marketing resource. I am also planning to recruit people into the business, which I never expected to do when I did my initial business planning. With the flexibility to be able to take bold steps like these, the future looks very bright indeed.

"The opportunity that Expense Reduction Analysts gives you is almost limitless and the support is amazing: they will do everything they can to help you to grow."

Published: 9 September 2009

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