THE DEATH of STS Health managing director Ed Thame two and a half years ago forced Deborah Thame to make a difficult decision about the future of the business.
After careful consideration Ms Thame decided that she would take on the role of managing director if it could be combined with her commitment to her children.
When Ms Thame first explored the idea of taking a major role in the business she employed consultants to see whether it would be possible to effectively run the business working four days a week.
“On the other side I had to make sure that I was doing the right thing for the staff,” she said.
“To enable that flexibility I have to be able to trust the staff I’ve got.”
The commitment to staff has delivered STS Health the Best Employer Award in the Family Business Awards.
It’s been a very steep learning curve for Ms Thame considering that on top of getting up to speed with the business she has had to deal with the grief of losing her husband and the father of her children.
“It’s just about learning to deal with all of it,” she said.
“But it’s been great to see what we’ve been able to achieve in only two and a half years.”
