Background
Tradeweb is one of the world's leading global operators of electronic marketplaces for rates, credit, equities and money markets. Since its launch in 1998, the business has changed the way institutional investors, central banks, asset managers, hedge funds and dealers trade fixed income, derivatives and ETFs.
With thousands of institutional clients and market participants across North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific, Tradeweb relies on resilient, secure and efficient workplaces that support mission-critical financial operations. At the time of this assignment, its London operations were based across offices on Gresham Street and Moorgate.
To support the continued growth of its UK business, Tradeweb asked Maxwell Stephens to recruit an experienced Office & Facilities Manager to oversee workplace operations across those London offices.
The Challenge
Tradeweb needed a polished and highly organised Office & Facilities Manager able to deliver a strong workplace experience in a demanding global financial services environment.
The successful candidate would be the central point of contact for all facilities, workplace and office operations, looking after employees, visitors and senior stakeholders while keeping the offices operationally resilient. The appointment called for someone who could balance planning with hands-on delivery across a wide range of responsibilities.
Key responsibilities included:
- Leading the day-to-day management of Tradeweb's London offices.
- Managing all hard and soft facilities management services.
- Maintaining relationships with landlords, contractors and service providers.
- Managing office maintenance and planned preventative maintenance programmes.
- Overseeing workplace projects, office refurbishments and relocations.
- Coordinating supplier procurement and contract management.
- Managing health & safety, fire safety and statutory compliance.
- Conducting workplace risk assessments and ensuring regulatory compliance.
- Organising Fire Warden and First Aid training programmes.
- Managing office logistics and workplace services.
- Supporting business continuity and operational resilience initiatives.
- Delivering a high standard of workplace experience for employees and visitors.
Roles like this are often mistaken for office management with a facilities label attached. In a trading environment they are not. Workplace failures have a direct operational cost, so the postholder has to hold statutory compliance and planned maintenance to the same standard as any hard FM function while also meeting the service expectations of a front-office population. Given the pace of global financial markets, the appointment also needed strong organisational skills, commercial awareness and the ability to reprioritise quickly.
Our Approach
Maxwell Stephens worked closely with Tradeweb's leadership team to build a full understanding of the organisation's workplace culture, operational priorities and technical requirements.
Drawing on our specialist facilities management network, we ran a targeted executive search focused on professionals with experience in corporate headquarters and financial services environments. We prioritised candidates with:
- Corporate office and facilities management experience.
- Financial and professional services backgrounds.
- Multi-site workplace management expertise.
- Strong health & safety and compliance knowledge.
- Office relocation and workplace project experience.
- Vendor procurement and contract management capability.
- Budget management and commercial awareness.
- Capable stakeholder management and communication skills.
- A proactive, customer-focused and professional approach.
Every shortlisted candidate went through a structured assessment covering technical expertise, leadership capability, workplace project experience and cultural fit. Relocation experience was weighted deliberately: a manager who has run a move understands the sequencing, the landlord negotiations and the communication load involved, and that is difficult to learn on the job while the move is happening.
The Outcome
Maxwell Stephens appointed an experienced Office & Facilities Manager who combined technical facilities expertise with strong organisational ability and a clear service focus.
The appointed candidate quickly became a trusted member of Tradeweb's corporate services team, taking ownership of workplace operations across both London offices and improving service quality and operational performance. The appointment delivered:
- Stronger workplace operations. Day-to-day management of the London offices, giving employees a safe, efficient and professional working environment.
- A completed office relocation programme. A leading role in a significant relocation project, coordinating stakeholders, contractors and suppliers so the move went through with minimal disruption to business operations.
- Health & safety governance. Firm management of health & safety procedures, workplace risk assessments and statutory compliance, supporting employee wellbeing across the estate.
- Improved supplier performance. Proactive vendor management and performance monitoring, producing better service levels, clearer accountability and better value from facilities contracts.
- Operational resilience. Planning, maintenance management and business continuity support that kept the offices running without interruption.
Why This Placement Worked
The appointment strengthened Tradeweb's corporate workplace function with experienced leadership across facilities management, office operations, health & safety and workplace projects, in a business where workplace performance is treated as operationally significant.
The search worked because it tested both halves of the brief. Candidates who look strong on service alone struggle with compliance and contract performance; candidates who look strong on hard FM alone are exposed in a front-office setting. Assessing against relocation experience as well kept the shortlist to people who had already handled the hardest part of the job.
If you are recruiting an Office & Facilities Manager for a corporate headquarters, or planning a move that the postholder will have to deliver, Maxwell Stephens can help you scope the brief and reach the right people. Get in touch with our team.