At the beginning of 2023, we took advantage of a training grant which was aimed at staff development. We approached our staff with the aim of finding 10 people who wanted to develop their ability to become a senior manager and potentially a future leader of our business.
We were delighted with the response we received. There were some really interesting applications and ideas, which made the selection process very difficult, so much so that the 10 places up for grabs became 12.
Throughout the year all of the candidates attended six day-long courses in our training centre, hosted by an external consultant renowned within the construction sector. The days were structured around different styles of leadership, management, career development and progression.
Upon completion of the course, each person presented their project to the McPhillips Board for consideration. The project had to be a simple idea which they believed would improve an area or practice within our business.
The Board were so impressed by the standard of projects all 12 participants were tasked with implementing their ideas into the business. Some projects were closely linked and were therefore merged together under the management of small teams. Each project leader was assigned a mentoring director to bounce ideas off, however, the member of staff responsible for the idea led the project.
Projects included:
- A new CRM system, which is helping our estimating team use better data to capture trends and manage the pipeline
- A strategic overhaul of our IT systems across the business
- Formalisation of our supply chain system across civils and building
Building Estimator Craig Martin commented: “The Senior Management Development Programme gave me the opportunity to better my management and presentation skills whilst implementing a business improvement project. The programme acted as a team building exercise and brought together commercial and operational staff who wouldn’t usually interact within their day-to-day roles.”
Tom Adams Civils Estimator added: “I thoroughly enjoyed the Management Training programme with Bob Billborough and I believe that being given the chance to attend courses like this not only helps individuals to grow but also contributes to the company’s success. Some of the topics gave an insight into how a company operates and what separates the good, the bad and the ugly. Other areas of the course gave time for personal reflection such as topics like personal effectiveness and communication.”
Managing Director Paul Inions is delighted with the results: “This is the first time we’ve run this kind of project and it’s been fantastic. To give individuals the opportunity to learn and grow, to question both themselves and us as a business, then to propose how we can improve can only be a positive thing.
“I would like to think we have opened people’s eyes to the opportunities that exist at McPhillips and helped some of those with their future ambitions. The company has always had a stable management team, we’re laying the foundations for the next generation of leaders.”
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