Head of UK Facilities Management for ISG

Background

ISG is a global construction and fit-out specialist, delivering innovative and sustainable environments that support businesses, communities and individuals. With a workforce of approximately 2,800 professionals operating across multiple regions, the business is known for the quality of its delivery and its focus on the customer.

To support continued growth and operational performance, ISG needed a Head of UK Facilities Management to lead and develop its facilities strategy across a diverse portfolio of offices throughout the United Kingdom. Maxwell Stephens was engaged to run the search.

The Challenge

ISG wanted an experienced facilities management leader who could set strategic direction while keeping operations running well across multiple locations. The successful candidate would develop and implement a UK-wide facilities management strategy aligned with organisational objectives, supporting business operations and improving workplace performance.

The responsibilities were broad:

• Developing and delivering the UK facilities management strategy
• Leading facilities operations across multiple office locations
• Managing geographically dispersed facilities teams
• Ensuring compliance with health & safety and statutory regulations
• Driving consistency and standardisation across sites
• Managing facilities budgets and operational expenditure
• Overseeing supplier and contractor performance
• Leading office fit-out, refurbishment and workplace projects
• Supporting workplace wellbeing and employee experience initiatives
• Driving sustainability and environmental improvements
• Managing risk and business continuity requirements
• Building strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders

Multi-site leadership roles of this kind are harder to fill than a single-site head of facilities post. The leader is rarely in the building where a problem occurs, so the job depends on standardised processes, capable local teams and supplier governance rather than personal presence. ISG's role needed strategic leadership, operational expertise, commercial awareness and the ability to influence stakeholders across a large and complex organisation, and candidates had to show all four.

Our Approach

Understanding the requirement

We worked closely with ISG to understand both the technical requirements and the strategic ambitions attached to the role. Particular emphasis was placed on identifying candidates with:

• Senior facilities management leadership experience
• Multi-site operational management expertise
• Strategic planning and programme delivery capability
• Experience managing large facilities budgets
• Strong compliance and risk management knowledge
• Office fit-out and refurbishment experience
• Team leadership across geographically dispersed locations
• A commitment to workplace wellbeing and sustainability

Targeted search

Drawing on Maxwell Stephens' specialist facilities management network, we ran a targeted search focused on senior facilities professionals with experience of leading national portfolios and complex workplace environments. We prioritised candidates who demonstrated strong strategic thinking, proven operational leadership, commercial and financial acumen, experience of managing change and transformation, and strong stakeholder management and communication skills.

Candidate assessment

Shortlisted candidates went through a thorough evaluation of their leadership capability, technical expertise, commercial understanding and ability to align facilities strategy with wider business objectives. At this level, the last of those is the differentiator: many senior FM professionals can run a portfolio; fewer can explain how the facilities plan serves the business plan, and that is what a head-of-function role requires.

The Outcome

We placed a highly experienced Head of UK Facilities Management whose background matched ISG's operational requirements and strategic aims. The successful candidate brought extensive expertise in facilities leadership, workplace strategy, compliance management and project delivery, and was able to contribute quickly across the organisation.

The role covered facilities strategy, operations across ISG's UK locations, compliance and risk management, and budget management.

Why This Placement Worked

The brief was written around the whole job — strategy, compliance, budgets, projects, people and sustainability — rather than around the most urgent problem of the moment, and we assessed against all of it. That is what allowed the appointment to work across the portfolio rather than in one part of it.

Maxwell Stephens recruits senior facilities management leaders for multi-site and national portfolios. If you are planning a head of facilities appointment of this kind, get in touch with our team to discuss the brief.