This month we are excited to celebrate two exceptional colleagues who have reached a significant milestone with Impulse Decisions—8 years of dedication and hard work!  

Tom Hesketh Director of Hospitality Sales and Will Ferguson Director of Fundraising both began their career journeys with us in 2016!  In this blog we look back on their inspiring paths, achievements and memorable moments along with the incredible growth they’ve experienced throughout their time with us!  

Now, let’s hear from Tom and Will as they share more about their journeys… 

  

What were you doing before you joined Impulse Decisions?   

TH –  I spent most of my early life and career working is the golf industry before moving into advertising sales for a radio station  

WF – Sales Manager for a software company  

  

What drew you to Impulse Decisions 8 years ago?  

 TH – I came across the role by chance, as a friend of mine based in the UAE made the introduction and as soon as I heard about the industry and role, I couldn’t turn it down  

WF – It was a company eager to grow in every area. To develop fundraising services that charities can utilise and to create memorable experiences at world renowned sporting events.  

I was drawn to how ambitious the plans were to become industry leaders and the prospect of travelling the world to experience sports events.  

  

How has your role evolved over the 8 years?  

TH – Myself and Will both started at the same time as Business Development Managers – we have both taken slightly different routes within the company. My role is now to oversee the sales of our hospitality packages and oversee the quality and delivery of our sporting experiences – whilst also balancing this with a base of auction clients.  

WF – I started as a Business Development Manager, a few years later I progressed to Director level – looking after the development of the auction client base.  

I also took a role as Director of Sales & Operations for our online auction business SliderStock, so I have two roles side by side.  

  

How has Impulse Decisions changed/progressed over the 8 years?   

TH – It has changed massively over the last 8 years – when me and Will joined the company, we were in a tiny office with a team of 3 people and we are now at a head count of around 30 in the office!  

WF – Is a completely different beast to when I first started. We’ve grown from doing under 100 auctions in a year to nearly 600, we work with a large number of the UK’s most high-profile events, professional sports clubs, we run auctions in the US, UAE, Europe and Asia.   

We built our own online fundraising platform, SliderStock, during COVID, which allows us to offer a varied range of services to raise money for charities. The team has also grown significantly, with investments in every department.  

  

What are some of your most memorable achievements during your time here?  

TH – It has been a whirlwind of a time here, but i think the best achievement for the company was making it through the covid period – as we were effectively without any income for 18 months and couple that with having to refund a lot of clients for their experiences that couldn’t be delivered – we did well to survive and we are now on a great trajectory.   

WF – Developing my role into leading the sales team is definitely one of the things I value the most. Seeing my team succeed is my number one priority and seeing their work have an impact across the business is something I’m very proud of.  

The build of SliderStock is also up there as one of my top achievements. During such uncertain times, we had the opportunity to direct our focus on a positive project that was going to help the business long term and expand our capabilities to support charities. It was a very tough slog, but the end result was worth the many months spent on zoom!  

  

What do you look forward to in the coming years at Impulse?  

TH – We are due to launch our new website in the new year and looking to take our offerings out to a larger audience – so it is a very exciting time, with lots of opportunities and lots of untapped markets for us to move into.  

WF – I’m excited about the direction the company in general. The team is full of very talented and dedicated individuals who all work incredibly well as a collective, which I think is a recipe for success however the business develops.  

  

What advice would you give to someone starting their career at Impulse?   

TH – Embrace the challenge , push yourself out of your comfort zone and put yourself forward for every opportunity that comes your way.   

WF – Buckle up! It’s hard work, but you get out what you put in and there are lots of opportunities to develop professionally and personally. Everyone has the chance to get stuck in and become an important part of the business, you are rewarded for hard work and will get to experience a massive variety of different events.