Parity Group PLC expects more growth this year after encouraging start

() said the start of 2021 has been encouraging and anticipates further growth in the second half as business confidence returns.

The data and technology focused professional services group today unveiled new business wins. These included a contract from the Scottish government representing a total opportunity of up to £5mln over the next three to six years, and other public and private sector wins amounting to an estimated £400,000 in external contribution during the financial year.

WATCH: Parity Group get off to a ‘really fast start to the year’ reporting a number of new contract wins

The group said it secured a new debt facility from Leumi ABL that will support future growth ambitions, having significantly improved its working capital management over the past two years.

It also plans to invest further in technology after it boosted efficiency and margins.

While the short-term economic impacts of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic have affected performance, in the longer term it has accelerated the trends that underpin Parity’s new strategy, the firm added.

In the year to 31 December, revenue dropped to £57.8mln from £80.4mln in 2019 but loss before tax shrank to £300,000 from £1.1mln.

Parity returned to an operating profit of £23,000 from an operating loss of £725,000 the year before.

It removed £4.2mln of operating costs, allowing £1.6mln to be invested back into the business.

It significantly improved operational gearing with a new operating model.

The reduction of staff numbers and headcount costs has allowed investment in people who bring new skills, Parity said, while the team’s incentives have been updated towards profitable growth, managing down reliance on revenues that delivered little or no margin.

In a separate announcement, the firm announced John Conoley has decided to step down from his role as non-executive chairman.

He is replaced by Mark Braund, who joins the board with immediate effect from his role of executive chairman at specialist cleaning, hygiene and decontamination company ().

He was previously chief executive at Plc, a provider of technology and services for smart buildings and commercial spaces and led the business through a well-documented turnaround, overseeing the sale of profitable legacy assets and the carve-out of the software technology business now known as .

“Parity has made great progress over the past few years,” Conoley said in a release.

“Having completed its transformation into a data and technology focused business, I leave Parity in a strong position: it is for the first time free from past legacy issues; it has successfully refinanced with better terms than before; and in its full year 2020 results has delivered an impressive market leading performance despite the challenges of the pandemic.”