Ballerina swaps tutu for trucker recruitment

Alice Wheeler has danced in the Nut Cracker and Swan Lake with the European Ballet, but as the newest manager with recruitment specialists, TRS Personnel Ltd, she’s now dedicated more to filling drivers’ roles than perfecting her pirouette.

The firm, which has offices in Telford, Shrewsbury, Wolverhampton and Stafford is one of the area’s largest suppliers of agency drivers and has order books to provide them for clients already full through to 2013.

Alice arrives at TRS Personnel with three years of recruitment experience in both nationwide and smaller firms, as well as a golf handicap of 11 and a place in the Shropshire County team as part of her diverse repertoire of skills.

Managing director of TRS Personnel, Jeff Lawrence, said: “Alice is a great addition to our staff. As well as having wide experience of working in recruitment, she brings the benefits of someone with varied interests and skills and that always adds no end to the strengths of a business. We’re very confident that the drivers and other staff we recruit are going to love dealing with her.”

Alice said: “People do comment on how there’s a bit of a difference between ballet and recruiting drivers for heavy goods vehicles, but the discipline needed to dance transfers well to getting any job done! Part of my role here at TRS Personnel is to keep adding the drivers to the books and it’s great to know that we have work ready and waiting for lots of them if they want to get in touch.”

Alice, who is based at the firm’s Stafford Park headquarters, in Telford, still dons the pointe shoes now and again but has promised that the ability to execute an arabesque will not be added to the requirements for new drivers.

TRS was a 2011 winner in the Shropshire Business Awards and was set up by Jeff Lawrence in 2006 with the aim of focusing on personal service to its clients. The company also takes its role in the community seriously, putting tens of thousands of pounds into good causes since its launch. It is currently the headline sponsor of Telford Tigers English Premier League ice hockey team.