Tezlom, formally known as 247 Professional Health, is a family-run medical healthcare recruitment business, directed by Roz and Ryan Armitage. Their extraordinary story of success despite devastating personal loss, addiction and depression has made the Tezlom story about more than business. It has become a shining example of how a focus of Mental Health in the workplace leads to a company culture that is cohesive and successful.
The story of the franchise began in 2008, where the family worked together as a tight-knit, family, unit. Including Ryan, his Mum Roz, his Dad Les and Brother Tom, all working together as company directors.
However, the story of Tezlom wasn’t at all plain sailing, throughout the last eight years, Ryan’s father, Les, was unfortunately diagnosed with Bowel Cancer, and more recently Parkinson’s Disease, a condition causing the loss of nerve cells in the brain.This was one of the first key challenges for both Ryan, and Tezlom, yet unknowing as to what else there was to come.
Tragically, after a terrible struggle with addiction fueled by the pressures of business, Ryan lost his brother to suicide in 2018. The impact of which Ryan openly admits still haunts him to this day. Both events in combination left Ryan and his Mother, Roz, in a dark place, tackling the challenge that would have brought most people, let alone entrepreneurs to their knees.
Far from breaking him, Ryan now uses his own tragic story to become an outspoken voice for mental health in the workplace. He speaks about the signs he missed and the culture that is needed within a company to ensure all employees feel that they are in a ‘safe place’ where they can share the challenges they are facing.
“The workplace can introduce all kinds of different impacts on our mental health, from the stress of work-load, to issues of bullying. This is before you even consider the personal issues someone can be facing externally. Moving the workplace into the home introduces additional issues surrounding mental health, such as loneliness”
2020 saw a dramatic shift towards working at home, following in-parallel with an ever-growing rise in those seeking mental health support, and that’s by only recording the individuals who reached out. We are tackling a Mental Health pandemic, whilst we remain in the midst of Covid-19.
“As business leaders we need to take an initiative on preventing the negative impacts of this pandemic, protecting both our employees, and clients”
When we recognise how much has changed from families, to workplace environments, you are taken aback by how much the public have survived in the past year. Although Tezlom has continued to grow successfully throughout 2020, Ryan wants to ensure he remains a key player in supporting both his employees, and clients; as we continue to move through an ever-changing society.
By recognising that Mental Health maintenance is an essential form of pastoral-care for those at Tezlom, Ryan urges other business owners, directors and leaders, to listen to his story, and realise that any one of their team could be tackling something similar, without even knowing.
As a man who has tackled some challenging circumstances, Ryan has become a champion for Mental Health in the workplace, and wishes to campaign for change to all franchises across the UK.
