Jack Parkinson sounds pleased with himself.

The chairman of HRGO, the £90 million turnover recruitment business based in Ashford, explains he has just come off the phone from sealing a £1.3 million contract.

“It’s a good morning for us,” he jokes sitting alongside his son John, who is IT director at the family firm.

The company was founded by Jack’s mother Betty Parkinson in 1957, after she won a contract to supplying temporary staff to Dartford Paper Mills.

In the early days a young Mick Jagger walked in looking for work while he was an A-level student at Dartford Grammar School, before he formed the Rolling Stones.

She told him his appearance would have made it hard for her to recommend him to her major clients.

“She started off the business making 10 shillings a day,” said Jack. “She did it for nothing.

“I remember we had to cancel our summer holiday because we needed the money to pay the temps.”

Jack, 72, initially had no intention of joining his mother’s firm and started his career as a refrigeration engineer, which took him to South Africa.

His father encouraged him to return and work in the family business, then known as Parkinson Staff Bureau, but he quickly got tired of “interviewing charming young ladies” and launched a venture of his own, Refrigeration Recruitment.

Its success sparked an entrepreneurial eye for joint ventures in Jack, who began a long period of growth for HRGO by starting new recruitment firms with partners in different sectors.

“My philosophy is 2+2=6. The result of a merger is greater than the sum of its parts...” - Jack Parkinson, HRGO

Today, the company employs about 300 staff in 36 offices across the UK, with its head office in Ashford.

“Dad’s strategy is to share the company with entrepreneurs who join us,” said John.

“In his career he has created dozens of businesses in partnership with other entrepreneurs and that helped to grow the business to the size it is today.”

HRGO has sold off many successful joint ventures. In 1995, Jack set up Human Engineering, an ergonomics and risk management business, with two engineers.

The firm started with £30,000 and was sold to Lloyd’s Register for £5 million in 2008, with £2.4m going to his four joint venture partners and £2.6m to HRGO.

“Even today I don’t know what they do,” he joked. “These guys were geeks and had no idea about running a profit and loss account or tax.

“We looked after the administration and they got on with their specialist skills.

“My philosophy is 2+2=6. The result of a merger is greater than the sum of its parts.”

He apologises for slight slurring in his voice. He had a stroke last year, having retired and moved to Gibraltar for five years.

The doctor told Jack he needed to start going to the gym or exercising his mind more – so he decided to return to work.

He focuses entirely on expanding the business through acquisitions and mergers. He has 20 opportunities for joint ventures on his desk.

“We have fantastic people in recruitment and I keep my nose out of it because they are a lot better at it than me,” he said.

John, 27, started his involvement in the family business on the recruitment side and moved into engineering. His role in IT support gives him an overview of all areas of the business.

“I get to see the whole group and help recruitment companies with their challenges,” he said.

“I find it interesting working in the recruitment side but I also get to work with our joint ventures which are not in recruitment but need IT.”

What is your business philosophy?

Jack: “I always say ‘Yes is the answer. What was the question?’ Every situation is an opportunity in disguise. If you don’t have a dream, how are you going to have a dream come true? I have spent my life thinking about dreams and then I make them come true.”

What were the challenges for John joining the family business?

Jack: “It means he has got to work twice as hard as anybody else. He got up at 4am, which was a lay in. He has to prove to everyone else that he is better in that area. He knows nothing about recruitment but he knows about IT and the technical side.”

What are the most common mistakes candidates make when you are sending them for an interview?

John: “We have advice on our website which tells people they should be honest and open. They should admit gaps in their knowledge to an employer. It is more acceptable these days to say where you need more training and development. Also, read through the job advert and understand what you are applying for.”

Is it fair to say the recruitment industry is seen as a necessary evil by many businesses?

John: “There is lots of value in recruitment still. I wouldn’t say it is a necessary evil. Many clients come to us because they want better business intelligence or want us to assess large pools of candidates, which would cost them a fortune to do themselves. We often help customers with cost cutting and to be more agile.”

CV – Jack Parkinson

Born: 01/3/1945

Live: Leeds, near Maidstone

School: Dartford West Secondary Modern

Family: Son John and daughter Sydney

First job: Making parts for refrigerators

First wage: £11 a week

Car: Lotus 7

Book: The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life by Alice Schroeder

Music: The Rolling Stones

Gadget: iPhone 6S

Last holiday: France

Charity: Rotary Club

CV – John Parkinson

Born: 14/2/1990

Live: Canterbury

School: King’s School, Canterbury

First job: Welfare administrator for Citizens Advice Bureau

First wage: National minimum wage

Car: Audi A4

Book: Zero to One by Peter Thiel

Music: Radiohead

Gadget: MacBook

Last holiday: Caribbean cruise

Charity: RNLI