Position: Managing Director

Location: Sevenoaks, Kent

Salary: circa £120K, plus 30% bonus, shares scheme & car allowance

Industry: Fire & Smoke Controls

About the job

A market leader in sustainable service delivery is seeking a dynamic and visionary Managing Director to lead its continued growth and operational excellence across its national service network. The business delivers a range of services to the FM space, specialising within HVAC, Mechanical, Fire & Smoke Controls. Offering bespoke solutions across a multitude of commercial partners.

Role Summary

The Managing Director of Mechanical, Fire and Smoke plays a critical role in growing the division and driving performance while ensuring that the actions of our colleagues align with our commitment to being Customer Centric, achieving Operational Excellence, prioritising Safety First, demonstrating Ownership, and remaining Results Driven. This position oversees all aspects of team performance, ensuring high-quality service delivery, managing KPIs and incentives, maintaining health and safety standards, fostering effective communication, and providing comprehensive support to engineers and service coordinators. The Business Unit Director collaborates closely with all members of the team and other departments to drive operational excellence and contribute to the overall success of the company.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Planning and Execution

• Formulate and implement strategies that align with the overall corporate objectives, ensuring the business unit's growth and profitability.
• Define clear goals for the business unit and ensure they are aligned with the company's long-term vision.
• Track and analyse the performance of the business unit, adjusting strategies and operations as needed to meet objectives.

Operational Management

• Ensure that the business unit operates efficiently, effectively, and profitably on a day-to-day basis.
• Works closely with the helpdesk to manage the allocation of resources, including finances, human resources, and technology, to ensure optimal productivity and efficiency.
• Continuously seek ways to improve processes, reduce costs, and enhance the overall operational efficiency of the business unit.

Financial Management

• Develop, manage, and oversee the business unit's budget, ensuring adherence to financial plans and objectives.
• Drive revenue growth and maintain profitability by managing costs, increasing sales, and enhancing margins through accurate job costing, regular review of current job costs, and collaboration with the team to identify areas for improvement.
• Provide regular financial reports and forecasts to senior management, ensuring transparency and accuracy.

Team Leadership and Development

• Lead, mentor, and motivate a team of managers and employees within the business unit, fostering a positive and productive work environment.
• Identify training needs and development opportunities for team members, ensuring the unit has the necessary skills and expertise to meet its objectives.
• Conduct performance evaluations, set objectives, and provide feedback to ensure continuous improvement and development within the team.
• Continuously define and enforce the roles and responsibilities for the entire team, ensuring everyone understands what is expected of them to be compliant and perform.

Customer and Stakeholder Relationship Management

• Build and maintain strong relationships with key clients and stakeholders, ensuring high levels of customer satisfaction and loyalty.
• Act as the primary point of contact between the business unit and other parts of the organisation, as well as external stakeholders.
• Handle negotiations with clients, suppliers, and partners, and resolve any conflicts or issues that arise. Specifically with Pro-Fire, by setting up meetings and working with the team to ensure clear communication and understanding of expectations.

Market Analysis and Business Development

• Analyse market trends, competitor activities, and customer needs to identify opportunities for growth and expansion.
• Lead initiatives to explore new business opportunities, partnerships, and markets to drive the business unit's growth.
• Work closely with product development teams to ensure that the business unit's offerings remain competitive and aligned with market demands.

H&S, Compliance and Risk Management

• Makes Health & Safety the centre of everything.
• Ensure that the business unit complies with all relevant regulations, laws, and industry standards.
• Identify potential risks to the business unit and develop strategies to mitigate these risks.
• Maintain high standards of quality in all aspects of the business unit's operations, from product development to customer service.
• Oversee the booking of training for the team, conduct PPE assessments, ensure that the appropriate workforce are allocated to work (i.e. 2 men on electrical/high risk works), and verify that either a BUD or a TSM initiates and correctly signs off each project, particularly when subcontractors are involved.

Reporting and Communication

• Regularly report to senior management on the performance of the business unit, including financials, operational efficiency, and strategic initiatives.
• Collaborate with other departments such as finance, marketing, HR, and IT to ensure the business unit's needs are met and its goals are supported.

Innovation and Continuous Improvement

• Encourage and implement innovative ideas and practices within the business unit to maintain a competitive edge.
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement, ensuring that the business unit remains agile and responsive to changing market conditions.

Performance Metrics & Indicators

• Health & Safety within the department is our number 1 priority. We continue to focus on enhancing our safety practices for both our employees and customers. The BUD will encourage this culture in all daily operational tasks.
• Ensure that the department's customer service delivery is exemplary against scorecards.
• Consistently meeting financial targets (WIP against turnover, Subcontractor Spend, Unresolved invoices etc).

Required Skills & Qualifications

Education & Experience:

• Previous Operational Directorship experience required.
• Previous experience working in an F&S / Mechanical business.

Technical Skills:

• Pay attention to details, such as verifying PPE against ESR, ensuring accurate job costing, and clearly defining roles.
• Strong data analysis skills and the ability to present data back to the board and the broader business.

Soft Skills:

• Strong leadership, mentoring, and coaching skills.
• Excellent verbal and written communication.
• Highly organised and capable of managing multiple tasks in a fast-paced environment, as well as working closely with team members and the wider team to achieve objectives.
• Strong decision-making, prioritisation, and conflict-resolution skills. Clear and concise communication is essential, whether it's defining R&Rs, discussing job costing, or managing supplier and customer expectations.
• Calm and professional under pressure.
• Proactively schedules and conducts meetings, logs action points, and creates clear documentation (e.g., R&Rs).
• Takes ownership of health and safety, efficiency improvements, and team development, ensuring tasks are completed and signed off correctly.

Preferred Skills & Qualifications

• Proven Leadership capabilities.
• Driven and Ambitious, looking to progress their career is a fast-growing company.
• Holds a good strategic understanding and is capable of seeing the bigger picture with future planning
• Capable of developing the whole team
• Customer focused
• ILM qualifications