Advo’s Executive Director, Colin Boxall looks back on an old career and a new venture.
“I joined the Board in 2008 as Commercial Director when my company merged with Advo. My career until then had focussed on financial advice latterly in employee benefits and staff wellbeing working with such diverse clients from law firms, some of the largest private equity companies to RFUW (women’s rugby), the African ‘world bank’ and even the Royal Household. I had been fortunate to be voted by industry peers as the UK’s ‘best’ adviser on a number of occasions. Over the years working with trade associations to improve industry standards; a public guide to PMI is still in use today by the ABI.
Joining Advo gave the opportunity to expand and develop further how to support client wellness programmes.
In 2016 Advo introduced two new divisions, Payroll & HR consultancy, radically changing how we could support our clients.
Work with client’s staff benefits and wellbeing programmes continued until 2024, culminating with Advo being confirmed as the UK’s leading advisory firm. Post pandemic industry changes and a shift in working practices meant the Advo way of supporting clients was becoming increasingly unsustainable. Rather than compromising on approach and standards Advo’s benefits division moved to US broker Brown & Brown with our new focus solely on Payroll and HR, still supported by our technology platforms.
This turn of events opened up a new career, the renovation of Cobdown House, a beautiful Victorian country house acquired by Advo a few years previously. After years of neglect, it is due to open in 2026 as a new Kent business ‘hub’ and events centre. It will allow Advo to better support clients through seminars and face-to-face events while giving a new ‘state of the art’ location for Kent SMEs.
My role as an Executive Director, working with my team to renovate the house and grounds is lowkey with little interaction with clients, but is an important part of Advo’s future. I now find myself at an age that many think of retirement, but my new career, managing the renovation and running the estate has given a new lease of life to both myself and Cobdown House.”
View of Cobdown House from western bridge showing the Grade II Finnish Olympic Sauna and rear annex offices where Advo staff currently work.