FACILITIES MANAGEMENT JOURNAL JOBS
FM CAREERS - CAREER LADDER
FM is known to be a career that people fall into
from other sectors. In this regular column, 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 Neil Fergus, Pinnacle Group.
Managing Director,
Name: Neil Fergus
Employer:
Pinnacle Group
Current role:
Managing Director
What first attracted you to
working in FM, did you have much
awareness of the profession?
In the first decade or so of my career,
I was a Housing Manager. During that
time, we were using a series of subcontractors
to provide FM services,
some good and some bad. We then
made the decision to start bringing
some of these services in house. And
that’s where it all started for me.
How did you progress through
the profession to your current role?
It started with the management of
cleaning and GM services in the housing
contract I was running that covered
some central London housing estates.
From there I made the move across to
a fully-fledged FM role when we took
over a local authority DLO that delivered
cleaning and GM services to schools and
council buildings.
My role has grown alongside Pinnacle’s
growth in FM services. The next key
point came when we took over a
company delivering Total FM services to
Education PFI projects. I managed the
transition of this company to Pinnacle
and while it was very challenging it’s
become a great success.
From there I became a Director and
was appointed MD in 2019. I’ve now
been with Pinnacle for over 20 years,
which is not what I would have imagined
at the start of my career. However, both
the company and my role within it have
constantly evolved and that’s kept it
interesting and motivating.
What have you found the most
challenging experiences working in
FM?
There’s no hiding the fact that I don’t
come from a technical background, so
there’s been many challenges around
this aspect of the work over the years.
This was definitely a test for me in the
early days of Total FM service delivery.
However, I’ve been lucky to have had
some great technical people working
alongside me. I really appreciate the fact
that they’re still happy to break these
issues down for me, even a er all these
years.
What have you found most
satisfying about working in the
sector?
We’ve become a bit of a specialist in
turning around di icult contracts,
particularly in PFIs and it gives me real
pleasure seeing our team go about this
transformation.
My strongly held view is that customer
service is the backbone to all FM
services and I love seeing our teams
go above and beyond for the clients or
communities they serve. There are so
many people working incredibly hard
(o en for modest reward) in our industry
and yet we never struggle to find people
that are willing to go the extra mile.
What qualities do you think are
most needed for a successful career
in FM?
There are so many di erent roles in FM
that I feel like there’s a place for most
people. But there are certainly some
overarching qualities that can help. Of
course, you have to be resilient and
flexible. One of the great things about
FM is that no two days are the same
and one of the demanding things about
FM is that no two days are the same. It
helps if you’re the type of person that
is ready for that. Emergencies will be
thrown at you and everyone will want
an immediate response.
And then it comes back to the general
interpersonal skills that are required
to provide really good customer
service. You need to be able to listen,
understand and empathise with your
clients and customers and then have the
ability to explain the reasoning behind
decisions you have made.
What has changed about your
job role since the COVID-19 crisis?
E.g. home working, furloughed,
redeployed?
I’ve spent a lot of time working from
home and had similar experiences to
most others in those circumstances.
You find that working from home
does have a rebalancing e ect
on work-life balance, but it’s also
emphasised that meeting and working
collaboratively with others is really
important, particularly when it comes
to making important decisions in a
crisis. Communication has likely been
the biggest change, in that the way we
communicate with customers, clients
and colleagues alike has by necessity
become more open, transparent and
available.
What is your organisation
doing to ensure the wellbeing of
sta – whether working at home or
returning to the workplace?
I think we’ve worked really hard to
ensure the wellbeing of our colleagues
remains our top priority. Initially,
this came in the form of extra PPE,
sanitation, a flexible approach and a
host of practical measures to protect
the health of our sta . We have also
been conscious of the new challenges
presented by the shi in working
patterns – both for those working from
home and those continuing to go to
their workplace. We took a proactive
approach, implementing new ways for
colleagues to interact, ask questions
and also worked hard to ensure that
colleague’s concerns were heard and
action was taken.
Over the course of the last couple
of years, we have also placed mental
health at the top of our agenda through
training, sharing advice, holding virtual
events and spreading awareness to
ensure that each member of sta feels
supported and able to speak with
someone should they need.
Do you believe the pandemic
has highlighted the important role
of the FM sector and what areas do
you see as most key?
Yes, it’s been great to see some
overdue recognition of the role that
our front-line workers play. In our work
in schools, we’ve been continually
reminded of the vital backbone of
support provided by FM services
to ensure children’s education can
continue. Across the board, the focus
on sanitation has become key in
helping to ensure that the communities
we serve can utilise their spaces safely,
and facilitate a return to some level of
normality.
What advice would you give to
someone coming into the profession
now?
It’s a great profession. It’s not always
easy but the varied nature of the work
is what keeps it interesting. There are
loads of learning and development
opportunities out there, so take them
whenever they’re available. And you are
doing a job that makes a di erence, it’s
important to always keep that in mind.
Which of your achievements
are you most proud of during your
career?
I think we’ve built a business that
is values driven. We always strive to
deliver excellence and I genuinely
believe that we’re a great company
to work for. We’ve won some awards,
which is always nice as it gives some
external validation of the work our
teams put in every day, but mostly I’m
proud of the fact that people enjoy
working for us.
What do you predict could be the
main changes to the FM sector post
pandemic?
I think we all know that the work
environment has changed. This was
happening anyway, but it’s been
dramatically accelerated by the
pandemic. The role of the o ice will
change for most people and work life
balance equations will be made. Even
as the industry makes technological
advances, many FM roles still require
people on site to physically complete
tasks and wellbeing will remain a top
priority for all workers. What we have
seen is that FM is incredibly resilient
and flexible.
:oXld yoX, or soPeone yoX NnoZ, liNe to Ee featXred in oXr career ladder colXPn" ,f yoXƉre an operational
)M ZitK Pore tKan yearsƉ experience in tKe sector, tKen ePail sara.bean@kpmmedia.co.uk
58 OCTOBER 2021
link
