How one man is using many lifetimes of experience to inspire the next generation

John Fordham, based in Lymington, graduated in Business Studies from Hendon College of Advanced Technology and Science and joined a graduate intake programme with Simms Motor and Electronics Corporation.

Since then he has been collecting sales and marketing experience the same way some people collect stamps. And he has now condensed some of that knowledge into a book.

John Fordham, Founding Executive Director at Jetstream Profit, talked to us about the history behind him and the future of graduating business students today.

John talked about his start in the business world: “We spent a lot of money and time researching products in the United States, Australia, and South Africa, and getting the products suitable for different markets. One year alone we launched sixteen new products and product evolutions.

As International Marketing Manager, he participated in the company achieving the Queens Award for Export with sales increases of forty percent a year over a five-year period.

John continued: “From there I moved to a German-owned manufacturing subsidiary, based in the UK. I was the third Managing Director in ten years and they’d experienced loss-on-loss for a decade. We turned the company around and into profit in four months.

“That company, manufacturing plastics packaging for colour cosmetics, became the fifteenth fastest growing plastics and engineering company in the UK. We made sixty million mascara packs in one year alone. We would be shipping into all the major brands such as Max Factor, Rimmel, Boots, and Coty Revlon. After 14 years the group was taken over and I left.”

With these successes behind him, John found himself in demand to pass on his advice. This led him forming his own company with a colleague to help businesses in need of assistance and advice, sometimes for them just to survive.

John added: “We started working with SMEs and helped grow a few companies. From my experiences I wrote Rocketship Management, which is basically a memoir of the situations I encountered over my business career in the form of business advice. It’s a How To book, case studies and stories, but it can always be used as a textbook and reference book.”

His work with a wide range of companies spanning fifteen years, coupled with his earlier career experiences, provide the real-life examples that form the backbone of his book.

John recently gave a talk at Southampton University Business School, on ‘How to get that first job; do’s and don’ts’ and has a lot to say about the importance of instilling useful skills in the next generation of Managing Directors.

“There are about 360,000 business school graduates each year coming through the schools and if you include university courses offering MBA courses, there’s even more. So over the last six years there are now two million qualified students out and about, helping UK business.

“Why is it that the productivity in the UK hasn’t grown in the last twenty five years?

“America keeps growing; why does America grow and the UK doesn’t? There seems to be more ambition in America to learn, improve, and try new things

“That is what I am trying to help with. The government has been doing various schemes for years. I’ve sat on the Investors in People Recognition Panel at Thames Valley Training and Enterprise Council. Also I worked with companies with grant support by The Department of Trade and Industry to Investigate an Innovative Idea, helping customers with marketing new ideas, and on products with patents. There’s more on that in the book.”

Following the wide career and extensive travel, John and his family now live in the South of England in the New Forest not far from the sea. With his positive attitude and can-do nature he has been a lifelong sailor, a racing helmsman and crew, and has a Yachtmasters
Certificate.

There is plenty of research with the specific UK weaknesses being shown in the book that highlight this dearth of management skills, and the disadvantage it leaves in the economy.

All this lead John to write the book, to help company managers work out what they do not know, so they can learn and grow. The book aims to help improve company performance and profitability.

“If enough people read it and also take advantage of the government schemes, productivity will eventually improve.”

Following his broad career and some extensive travel, John and his family now live in the New Forest, not far from the sea, where he can enjoy his other passions, including sailing as a racing helmsman.