Background
GreenAcres operates a growing portfolio of environmentally conscious memorial parks across the United Kingdom, combining landscape management with a sensitive and sustainable approach to remembrance. It is a highly specialised sector, and one where the standard of the grounds and buildings is visible to families at some of the most difficult moments of their lives.
As the organisation continued to expand, it needed an experienced Facilities Manager capable of overseeing infrastructure compliance, operational performance and estate development across multiple locations. GreenAcres asked Maxwell Stephens to run the search. The appointment mattered because it underpinned the continued delivery of safe, compliant and well-maintained environments while supporting the organisation's long-term growth strategy.
The Challenge
GreenAcres needed a Facilities Manager who could manage a geographically dispersed portfolio while balancing operational delivery with strategic oversight. It was a varied role, with responsibility for multiple sites that each carried their own operational requirements, stakeholder groups and estate management challenges.
Key areas of responsibility included:
- Multi-site facilities management.
- Health, safety and compliance leadership.
- Contractor and supplier management.
- Asset and infrastructure management.
- Planned and reactive maintenance oversight.
- Fleet management.
- Capital works and development projects.
- Budget management and cost control.
- Risk management and governance.
- Operational performance improvement.
- Stakeholder engagement across multiple locations.
The successful candidate needed to combine technical facilities management expertise with strong leadership capability and the emotional intelligence to operate within a values-driven organisation serving communities and families. Managing six geographically dispersed sites also demanded a high degree of autonomy, organisational capability and the ability to build effective relationships across a broad range of stakeholders.
That last point is easy to underestimate. A multi-site Facilities Manager spends much of the week away from head office, so the role suits people who can set their own priorities, hold contractors to account without a manager looking over their shoulder, and still keep senior leadership informed.
Our Approach
Understanding the requirement
Maxwell Stephens worked closely with GreenAcres' senior leadership team to build a detailed understanding of the organisation's operational structure, culture and long-term objectives. The role called for a facilities professional who could manage the operational responsibilities and also contribute to future development projects and the organisation's wider vision, and we wanted both halves of that reflected in the search criteria.
Targeted search
Drawing on our facilities management network, we ran a targeted search focused on candidates with experience across multi-site facilities management, estates and infrastructure management, health & safety leadership, asset management, contractor and supplier management, operational compliance, project and capital works delivery, and decentralised or regional operations.
Rather than relying solely on active applicants, we undertook a proactive market search to identify experienced professionals with the personal attributes the role required. In a specialised sector like this one, the best-suited candidates are rarely responding to advertisements.
Candidate assessment
Candidates were assessed against both technical and cultural criteria:
- Facilities and estate management expertise across dispersed sites.
- Health, safety and compliance leadership, with evidence of ownership rather than administration.
- Contractor and infrastructure management capability.
- Project delivery experience on capital and development works.
- Stakeholder engagement and communication at site and leadership level.
- Ability to operate independently across multiple locations.
- Cultural alignment with a values-led organisation.
- Leadership and problem-solving capability.
Throughout, the aim was a candidate able to support both current operational performance and future organisational growth.
The Outcome
Maxwell Stephens appointed an experienced Facilities Manager with a strong background in multi-site operations, compliance management and infrastructure oversight. The successful candidate brought extensive experience of managing geographically dispersed estates and a demonstrated ability to balance operational delivery with strategic planning. Their key strengths included:
- Significant multi-site facilities management experience.
- Strong health and safety leadership capability.
- Expertise in contractor, asset and infrastructure management.
- A track record of project delivery and operational improvement.
- Strong stakeholder management and communication skills.
- A proactive, solutions-focused leadership style.
- Close cultural alignment with the organisation's values and mission.
Following their appointment, the Facilities Manager integrated quickly and took responsibility for operational performance across the portfolio. Working closely with site teams, contractors and senior leadership, they have played a key role in supporting both day-to-day facilities operations and longer-term development initiatives. Across GreenAcres' national portfolio, the appointment has brought:
- Closer oversight of multi-site facilities operations.
- Improved health, safety and compliance management.
- Stronger contractor and supplier performance.
- Better asset and infrastructure management.
- Support for capital projects and estate development initiatives.
- Greater operational consistency across all locations.
- Stronger governance and risk management processes.
- Stronger facilities leadership across the organisation.
The placement gave GreenAcres a Facilities Manager able to support both immediate operational priorities and the long-term development of its distinctive and growing estate.
Why This Placement Worked
In a values-led organisation, cultural fit is not a soft criterion added at the end of a technical shortlist. It determines whether a Facilities Manager can work with site teams, contractors and the families the estate serves. This search weighted it alongside compliance, contractor and project capability from the outset, and the appointment reflects that.
Maxwell Stephens supports organisations across commercial, heritage, charitable, public-sector and specialist operational environments with recruitment across facilities, estates and property management, from multi-site operations and health & safety leadership to strategic facilities leadership. If you are recruiting a facilities role across a dispersed or growing estate, get in touch with our team.