Autotech Recruit has appointed former Kwik-Fit business development specialist Simon King as its concepts manager as it drives towards further growth.

The automotive recruitment business said that King had been appointed as part of a push to “drive strategy and forge new partnerships within the aftermarket and with OEMs” as it aims to continuing growing at a fast pace.

King has spent almost two decades with Kwik-Fit, within operations and business development positions.

Autotech Recruit has recently launched several training, including a Virtual Academy project launched last month, along with apprentice initiatives in a bid to reduce the ongoing recruitment and skills shortage within the industry.

Managing director, Gavin White, said that King would help to steer the business as it continues to grow. He said: “Our ‘inch-wide, mile-deep’ approach has enabled us to fully entrench ourselves within the automotive industry and we work with a wide range of businesses and governing bodies.

“This allows us to fully understand the needs of the industry and, while our overriding objective is to keep workshops running and supply the industry with skilled vehicle technicians and MOT testers, create fresh recruitment and training initiatives to reduce the skills gap.

“We are delighted to have Simon on board as not only does he have the knowledge and industry connections to help drive our strategy forward, but his experience will help shape our processes to ensure we continue to deliver innovative, quality solutions.”

King said that he had been Autotech Recruit’s biggest client while working at Kwik-Fit.

Commenting on his appointment, he added: “The team are unsurpassed in their ability to listen to the industry and create solutions to counteract recruitment challenges.

“For a small company, they have made a significant impact within large national automotive companies, and I am looking forward to helping them grow in the future.”

In addition to Simon’s post, Autotech Recruit has created two further business development positions.

Alistair MacDonald has joined the company to manage the aftermarket, while James Mackay is set to manage OEM partnerships.

This follows the appointment, at the end of last year, of recruitment industry expert, Graham Palfery-Smith as a non-executive director.