FACILITIES MANAGEMENT JOURNAL JOBS
FM CAREERS - CAREER LADDER
FMJ chats to a facilities professional about
how they got into the sector and takes a
look at their career path. This month we talk
to Huw Thomas, Head of Refurbishment,
Maintenance, Energy & Facilities at
Whitbread Plc.
Name: Huw Thomas
Current role:
Head of Refurbishment,
Maintenance, Energy &
Facilities Management
Employer: Whitbread Plc
How did you progress through
the profession to your current role?
I started my career as an electrical
apprentice at British Aerospace. I then
moved to the England, Wales and
Scottish railways, progressing through
design engineer and building services
engineer roles, before joining a (then)
relatively unknown airline, easyJet,
in 2000 where I rose to become the
airline’s Head of Property and Facilities.
My career at Whitbread began in 2016
where I was recruited as the company’s
Head of Facilities. I currently manage
superb teams providing refurbishment,
energy, maintenance and facilities
expertise for 815 Premier Inn hotels
and 430 Whitbread restaurants across
the UK as well as our head o ice
buildings.
What has changed about your
job role since the COVID-19 crisis?
E.g. home working, furloughed,
redeployed?
At the start of the pandemic we had
to close our estate of hotels and
restaurants very quickly. Overnight, the
job changed from actively managing
and improving a large estate to
managing the temporary closure of
most of our buildings.
We had to be nimble and balance the
need to keep our buildings in good
order during the lockdown, minimise
expenditure and be ready to reopen
quickly which we did successfully. With
the doors of our hotels and restaurants
now open we’re focusing back on our
strategic objectives – such as delivering
our £40 million refurbishment
programme for example.
I continued to work from the o ice
during the pandemic but managing the
team remotely.
What have you found most
challenging about your job in FM
since the lockdown?
Managing the rapid closure and
phased reopening of 1,200 hotels and
restaurants was a huge undertaking
and was certainly challenging at times!
We have also reopened with an
enhanced hygiene standard in place –
the Premier Inn CleanProtect promise
– to help guests’ book and stay with
confidence. The new safety standards
are in line with both World Health
Organisation and the European Centre
for Disease Control recommendations,
as well as UK government guidance,
and involved many changes at our
sites which my team and I were actively
involved in delivering.
As ever, it was the little things that
became stressful. Working alongside
contractors, factories and suppliers
that were running at reduced capacity
due to the lockdown also presented
challenges at times.
What qualities do you think are
most needed for a successful career
in FM?
FM roles involve understanding the
needs of a business alongside the
needs and wants of your colleagues,
customers and suppliers. To really
stand out, an interest in business
strategy and company culture is
important. Managing buildings also
involves working alongside many
people, so being a ‘people person’ is
an advantage.
Technical knowledge is undoubtedly
useful, but it can always be ‘bought
in’, so I always advocate building
transferable skills as a means of
succeeding in client-side roles.
What is your organisation doing
to ensure the safe return of sta to
the workplace?
We’re doing a huge amount as you
can imagine. There are some excellent
resources on the Premierinn.com
website which explain the new Premier
Inn CleanProtect enhanced hygiene
standard.
We haven’t yet reopened our support
centre. When we do, our o ice-based
sta will be working di erently with
a cap on occupancy, distancing rules
throughout, multiple sanitiser stations
and screens at receptions (to name
a few). Sta will also be working in
cohorts to minimise the impact of a
‘test and trace’ call.
We have consulted with teams on
these new measures and will continue
to engage directly and through
dedicated working groups. Everyone
has been very supportive so far.
Are you a member of any FM
association or body and if so what
benefits do you think they provide?
I have previously been a member of the
IEE, CIBSE and BIFM and have spoken
at their conferences over the years.
Do you believe the pandemic
has highlighted the important role
of the FM sector and the part its
people play in keeping workers
safe and buildings clean and
maintained?
Absolutely. Premier Inn is renowned
for its cleanliness and we need to
deliver a spotless room, in line with
our CleanProtect enhanced hygiene
promise, every time for our guests. We
also need to ensure our support centre
based teams have confidence to return
to our o ices safely when we reopen.
Facilities has always been a businesscritical
activity, but under-investment
can occur. The pandemic has shown
just how important safe, clean and
well-maintained buildings are which is
a positive for our profession.
What advice would you give
to someone coming into the
profession now?
Take time to understand your clients
and stakeholders (whether internal or
external) and work out what they want,
and what the business needs are,
before putting systems or programs in
place. It is easier to introduce a new
facilities strategy, or make the case for
budget, if you can demonstrate it is
what the business needs.
What do you predict could be the
main changes to the FM sector due
to the impact of the Coronavirus
pandemic?
In the short term, budgets in the sector
will undoubtedly come under pressure
in a deep recession.
On the plus side, the importance
of internal management teams will
grow giving businesses control over
their cost base. Companies are also
likely to review, and invest in, business
continuity planning which will present
opportunities for FMs.
I also think TFM will need to evolve
to accommodate the expected
shi towards agile working and
more flexible workspaces. Facilities
management, like everything else, will
need to become more flexible as we
adapt to living with COVID-19.
Would you, or someone you know, like to be featured in our career ladder column? If you’re an operational
FM with more than 10 years’ experience in the sector, then email sara.bean@kpmmedia.co.uk
54 OCTOBER 2020
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