Making a change - a personal story

Andrew, one of our directors, tells us how he started on the journey that is now Qryztal.

Business is in my blood.  My mum and dad ran a thriving retail pharmacy business. It was literally what kept a roof over our heads, paid all the bills and allowed us to be comfortably well-off and got us safely through recessions.

I was about 21, I think, when I had a vivid dream of taking possession, along with a business partner, of a huge house in the country - which was going to be our new corporate headquarters. I remember waking up and feeling intensely disappointed that this was just a dream and that I couldn't see any way that it could become reality. I'd left home and didn't know anyone in business. I was at the very bottom of the civil service; prospects for survival were excellent, but prospects for prosperity seemed to be non-existent.

I was in a survival mindset and couldn't see any possibility of growth, let alone having a growth mindset. In fact such things were frowned-upon where I worked and among the people I knew.

So the dream was buried and forgotten, apart from the occasional wistful 'might have been' recollection. Life moved on and so did I.

In late 2000 I entered a phase of my career in which (with the benefit of hindsight) I seemed to be accumulating a variety of potentially useful experience. I picked up a lot of business knowledge through my work, whilst at the same time advocating on behalf of colleagues who'd found themselves in trouble with their employer. I also discovered and developed a talent for teaching adults, both in groups and in one-to-one situations. But something was still missing.

I had a busy year from the autumn of 2014 into 2015 learning how to facilitate continuous improvement in a work context and putting this into practice in a number of tough situations. As a result of this I felt I was now ready for a real challenge.

The incorporation of Qryztal Ltd was the point at which I - finally - said a big wholehearted 'yes!' to my dream of too many years previously. And here we are, steadfastly working towards the fulfilment of a bigger vision - which you'll hear more about in the near future.

What's it like to work for Qryztal?

Here's what our people say about Qryztal:

"It's the only place l know where having a big vision of the future is an absolute requirement."

"Whatever happens, I know I can count on having support and encouragement. That means a lot to me."

"Qryztal is where ideas come to life."

"Innovation is what it's all about - starting from something that already exists, putting our unique twist on it, and then taking it to a higher level."

"Qryztal is about synergy and making the most of every opportunity."

"At Qryztal I'm inspired to do my best work and to believe that things can always be better."

"Continuous improvement and business excellence run through everything we do."

"Qryztal embodies the best of traditional British values and ideals. Our culture is one of honesty, trust and respect."

"Qryztal is where I can truly be myself."