Chris Sharp is founder of Sharp Consultancy, a specialist financial recruiter based in Yorkshire
When I think of the word mentor, I think of someone who offers guidance, who teachers, and who counsels when need be. No one has mentored me more throughout my life, than my father, Donald Sharp. An ambitious and respected Scottish born chartered accountant, who in 1964 arrived in Portugal with his wife Pat and a young family, and not even a word of Portuguese.
My father’s first ambition after completing his national service was to become a farmer, but he had seen his father’s disappointment which prompted him to decide on a much more academic route. He worked hard for his Chartered Accountancy exams and on completion, made his first move to Copenhagen in Denmark to start his career with PriceWaterhouse.
It wasn’t long before he had the opportunity to move again, this time to Portugal, when I was only two years old, my brother was eight weeks old and my sister was just a glint in his eye. He worked his way up to partner at Ernst and Young in Lisbon and although he was working incredibly hard, he knew the value of a work life balance, and he still managed to play a part in our up bringing.
My father excels in everything he does, he has three key phrases; “You get out, what you put in”, “Do the best you can” and “Always go the extra mile”.
He was fantastic with his clients; he took pride in taking a genuine interest in them. I remember him once asking me to search for an MGB book for one of his motoring enthusiast clients. He really did go the extra mile!
When I was at school he was always very encouraging. I excelled at sport and regularly played football with him till he was in his late 40’s. Although not as academic as him, I completed my degree in Accountancy & Financial Management, and stayed in England to start working for an international recruitment company.
A promotion brought me to Yorkshire in 1989, which is where I settled as a newly married man, I married a Yorkshire lass no less. In 1992, I founded Sharp Consultancy, in the midst of recession, interest rates were at record highs and recruitment was not a well trodden path. But I took a risk, just as my father and mother had done when they moved to Lisbon. My father, as always, believed in me, and showed even more support by offering financial backing. 14 years later, with an experienced team supporting me, Sharp Consultancy is still going strong, with the same values that my father instilled in me; getting out what I put in, being the best I can be, and always going the extra mile.
I now have three young children of my own, and if I am half the father he has been to me, I know I will do a good job. Through my father, I have a strong sense of discipline, and a drive and passion to succeed. He has been, and still is, my inspiration in life.
