After achieving a first class BSc in Chemistry and an MSc in Pollution and Environmental Control, Shirley worked for the London Borough of Hillingdon in the Public Protection Department before embarking on a consultancy career in Health, Safety & the Environment. Shirley subsequently went into private practice and was co-founder of Sypol, (a leading Health, Safety and Environmental consultancy) and S-Com (a Global Technology Recruitment company). She carried out consultancy work for over 25 years before founding Shirley Parsons Ltd in 2005, the specialist Global HSEQ recruitment company.As a Chartered Member of IOSH, Shirley was elected to serve on the IOSH Nominations Committee for 6 years. Shirley has overseen Shirley Parsons Ltd, to become the number one provider for recruiting EHS and Risk Management professionals in the UK, Europe and the US. She has also broadened the scope of the business to provide professionals for executive level campaigns and has a vision to make Shirley Parsons Ltd "the go to organisation" for anything to do with EHS talent globally. Her philosophy is that "People do Business with People" and this philosophy runs throughout the company. Shirley and her team have built Shirley Parsons Ltd to employ more than 70 staff internationally.