Interview with Paratus People’s Managing Director, Tom White

Paratus People is a specialist group of companies operating in the Internet of Things (IoT) sector and the video technology industry.

We represent a global client portfolio that includes Liberty Global, Technicolor and Sky Deutschland among others. We provide augmented staffing solutions across the world and have offices in Bristol, Amsterdam and Brussels. We’re also opening a base in the US.

We have just recorded a 125% growth in income for 2020 with turnover up from £2m to £7m in the last four years and have grown our team by 40% in the last 12 months.
 
 

 

How did you come up with the idea for the company?

 
I started the company due to a need for a dedicated business to support the need for talent following the explosive growth in the IoT industry.
 

 

How has the company evolved during the pandemic?

 
At the start of the pandemic we initially saw some hesitation in the market with a reluctance to invest as the cogs of the industry slowed down with the shock of multiple lockdowns and economic shockwaves. However, what became evident very quickly was that the global IoT supply chain had to grow rapidly to be able to continue to function. For example, logistics requirements relating to WiFi for home and professional broadband solutions.

This meant the demand for professionals in certain areas of the industry went stratospheric and we ended up having our best ever months in the middle of the first national lockdown in the UK.

While 2020 and the pandemic changed the world, we also saw in our sector that people hunkered down and consolidated what they were doing. The result, a year on, is an innovation boom with new R&D projects coming to the market – all requiring technical and engineering expertise alongside the need for tech sector support staff.
 

What can we hope to see from Paratus People in the future?

 
As we continue to evolve and grow the company you can expect us to lead the sector as the ‘go-to’ talent consultancy for the IoT industry. Our network of experts in the media, advertising, staffing, investment and consultancy functions will enable us to achieve our ambitions as a fast growth global business.

This year will see the launch of our dedicated German division with the incorporation of Paratus People Deutschland GmBH. We’ve also announced a new base in Santa Clara in the Silicon Valley region of the US, which aims to take advantage of the booming sector growth there and need for tech experts.

Some other new ventures include an update to our already successful IoT Podcast and a new IoT Jobsite.

The IoT podcast is one I host and is a platform for eminent thought leaders in the IoT world to share their knowledge and insight into the future of IoT, showcasing their personal and professional involvement in the industry. The IoT Jobsite is a central hub, advertising available roles for people looking for opportunities in the IoT space.

Another new area of expansion for us is in Reference Design Kit (RDK) – a fully modular, portable, and customisable open-source software solution that standardises core functions used in video, broadband and IoT devices.

We’re launching a further podcast series to promote this new part of the business. The RDK Podcast will be a specialist forum for industry experts to discuss advances in this thriving area of technology, it will be hosted by Jamie Walker, our head of video at Paratus People.