Mike Parsons (Barchester Healthcare)

Mike Parsons

Mike Parsons (born 25 August 1950) is a British entrepreneur, best known for founding Barchester Healthcare the UK's fourth largest provider of care homes. Mike is currently CEO of Barchester Healthcare.

Education

Mike read economics at Sussex and Oxford Universities and became a management consultant. He subsequently took an MBA at London Business School and the Diploma in International Management at Hautes Etudes Commerciales, Paris and the Graduate School of Business Administration on Wall Street.

In September 2011, at a conferral ceremony at New College, Oxford, Mike was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) in recognition of his achievements of founding Barchester Healthcare and his significant investment over the last 19 years in developing outstanding people.

Early career

He was a founding director, share holder and managing director of a top London advertising agency (KHBB) which he and his partners sold to Saatchi & Saatchi in 1985 thus becoming a major shareholder in that company. He worked at Saatchi for five years and was Chief Operating Officer of the international network. During this time he rationalised the Saatchi International network which involved the merging of many people businesses. In 1990 he sold his shareholding and left the company.

Barchester's first care home was Moreton Hill, a 17th century farm with views over the Cotswolds. In 1994 Moreton Hill care centre was awarded the Care Home Design Award. Fifteen years later, the home received Corporate Care Home of the Year 2009 and recently awarded the Special Contribution Award 2010 by Pinders Healthcare Design Awards.

Since 1996 Barchester Healthcare's turnover has increased from £7million to £408 in 2009. The company has developed the premium positioning offering a range of care products to mostly the private pay market and specialist markets. It is the only care provider listed in Sunday Times Top 25 Big Companies To Work For 2010 and is certified as one of Britain's Top Employers 2010.

The growth of Barchester has quickened in recent years, largely owing to the acquisition in October 2004 of Westminster Healthcare for £525 million, creating one of the major independent healthcare providers in the UK.

Sunday Times HSBC Top Track 250 league table (2010) ranks Barchester in 30th place, up eleven places from 2009. The company was also named as the second biggest employer on the league table. In 2009, Sunday Times HSBC Top Track 250 awarded Barchester a certificate "in recognition of being a star league table company from past ten years"

Parsons success was featured in City AM ^[1] Real Business ^[2] and, most recently in The Times.

Recent awards

In December 2010, Parson was awarded 'Care Personality of the Year' at The National Care Awards. Parsons was voted Man of the Year in Over 50's Housing Sector in the UK in 2009 (UK Over 50's Housing Awards 2009) He was voted fourth 'most influential' person in the independent sector by the readers of Health Investor for the Health Investor Power Fifty 2010 awards]; one place up from 2009.

In 2010, Mike Parsons was honoured with the London Business School’s annual Alumni Achievement Award. The award recognises a member of the alumni community “who has been very successful in business, politics, academia or within the community, and is a recognised leader in his/her field”. Following a nomination it is voted on by the Business School’s 30,000 alumni members.

Other business ventures

Parsons is also Group Chief Executive of Grove Investments, the holding company for Barchester, where his responsibilities include Barchester, Richmond Care Villages and Trilogy Health Services (the Barchester of the USA)

Charitable Foundation

Parsons is Chairman of the Barchester Foundation which helps older people and other adults with a disability who cannot obtain sufficient state funding and who show greatest need, obtain grants to help lead more fulfilled lives and reach their full potential. He also has teamed up with Stowe old boy Sir Richard Branson to provide five under-privileged South African school pupils the chance to attend their former school. The 'Branson Scholars' as they are known have their fees paid for and the experiment is something both Parsons and Branson are extremely proud of.

References

1. ^ http://www.cityam.com/city-focus/generating-cash-caring
2. ^ http://realbusiness.co.uk/leadership/mike_parsons_youre_in_good_hands

Mike's success was featured in City AMand Real Business

External links

• City AM
• Real Business

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Name	Parsons, Mike
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Date of birth	25 August 1950
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