Head of Facilities
When a business has just one location, there’s always going to be a person whose job it is to ensure the building itself and all its functions are running properly. It might be an office manager, plant manager or such like. But businesses with multiple locations need a more strategic, joined-up and budgeted way to run the properties, and that task is fulfilled by the head of facilities.
The role will be a blend of planning the facilities for future needs, ensuring the books are balanced for all the locations and planning maintenance, cleaning, services, safety and so on – in summary, keeping the facilities functional, profitable, legal and sustainable.
Under the head of facilities, management usually acts on a hierarchical basis, more so in larger operations with multiple plants, offices, depots and storage facilities. That means the head of facilities will often be based in the head office and will delegate tasks and goals to facility managers at the locations, but there will also be regular attendance on-site within the region covered.
The skills required
Head of facilities jobs usually demand experience in overseeing multiple locations of an organisation, and successful candidates will be able to demonstrate a strong aptitude for delegation to, and communication with, the various location managers. The job will be a blend of strategic planning and more urgent decision-making – you could be where the buck stops when a location manager needs to troubleshoot a pressing issue and a potentially costly decision has to be made and then justified to the board.
For some positions, however, experience managing a single facility will be a sufficient qualification, as many of the budgetary and management skills scale up straightforwardly.
Head of Facilities Jobs in Bristol
The largest city in South West England, Bristol is a centre of commerce, culture and education and it has long been associated with sea travel, with the Port of Bristol being a major economic boon to the area.
Situated on the Bristol Channel at the mouth of the Avon River, Bristol also shares a bit of the Severn Estuary coastline. By the 12th century, the city was an important point for the shipping industry, especially for trade with Ireland (and later Iceland and France) and it quickly grew to become one of England's largest medieval towns.
Along with Liverpool, Bristol was one of main ports in the UK involved in the Triangle Trade and the list of commodities that were exchanged includes cloth and textiles, glass, fish, wine and grain. As the years passed, other industries began to expand, including manufacturing, engineering and transport.
Today, Bristol is a thriving community with plenty of opportunities for those seeking Head of Facilities vacancies in the area.
One of the city's major employers is Defence Equipment & Support, which works to procure everything from ships and aircraft, through to munitions, technology and communications equipment for the MoD.
Other companies based in Bristol include Bristol Commercial Vehicles, BAE Systems and Orange UK.
Popular locations
Heads of facilities use Cast UK
At Cast UK, we only deal with high calibre people and positions, so if you’re looking for a head of facilities for your business, please reach out, as we’ll be able to shortlist a superb selection of candidates for your role. If you want us to be your recruitment partner, call us on 0333 121 3345 and speak to one of our consultants.
If you’re looking to take a step up the ladder as a facilities manager and you’ve got the skills and experience, why not click the link below and register with us? We could have just the role for you.
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