The Chief Operating Officer (COO) will hold full operational responsibility for all service operations across the UK. This role is accountable for delivering safe, efficient, profitable, and customer-focused performance across all regional divisions and specialist operations.
This is a critical appointment within a private equity-backed, high-growth business, where operational performance directly drives EBITDA and enterprise value.
The successful candidate will combine strong commercial acumen with hands-on operational leadership, driving margin performance, service excellence, engineering productivity, and operational consistency across a national, multi-site field service organisation.
Key Responsibilities
Operational Leadership
- Lead all operational divisions with full accountability for performance, consistency, and execution
- Establish and maintain a unified national operating model
- Own and lead weekly KPI and performance reviews across all regions
- Drive continuous improvement across engineering, scheduling, and customer service functions
- Support integration of acquisitions and regional expansion
Margin Control & Profitability
- Take full ownership of EBITDA performance and operational margin improvement
- Drive efficiencies through productivity, routing optimisation, and cost control
- Improve commercial performance across repairs, quotations, and service delivery.
- Maintain strict financial discipline across suppliers, subcontractors, and operational spend
Service Division Ownership
- Take full responsibility for the core service division
- Ensure performance consistency across key metrics
Customer & Commercial Performance
- Lead customer relationship strategy and escalation management
- Maintain high levels of customer satisfaction, retention, and recurring revenue
- Support account management teams in delivering commercially sustainable solutions
Branch & Regional Leadership
- Lead and develop Regional Directors and Branch Managers
- Drive accountability through robust reporting and performance frameworks
- Ensure consistency of delivery, process, and customer experience across all regions
Engineering Performance & Workforce Optimisation
- Maximise engineer productivity, utilisation, and routing efficiency
- Improve operational density and reduce travel inefficiencies
- Align workforce capability with service demand
- Lead workforce planning, recruitment strategy, and capability development
Supply Chain & Operational Efficiency
- Manage supplier and subcontractor relationships to ensure performance and value
- Conduct structured supplier reviews and maintain strong commercial control
- Reduce subcontractor dependency through internal capability development
- Collaborate with innovation teams to improve operational efficiency and service delivery
Key Skills & Experience
- Proven success in a senior operational leadership role within a multi-site service, engineering, or field service business
- Strong track record of driving EBITDA growth and operational margin improvement
- Experience leading national field engineering operations across multiple regions
- Deep understanding of service KPIs, utilisation, routing, and operational optimisation
- Demonstrated ability to lead geographically dispersed teams and branch networks
- Experience within a private equity-backed or high-growth environment is highly desirable
- Strong commercial mindset with the ability to balance operational delivery and financial outcomes
Personal Attributes
- Highly commercial, results-driven, and accountable
- Hands-on, proactive operational leader who takes ownership without waiting for direction
- Strong cultural alignment with a collaborative, non-hierarchical environment
- Confident decision-maker with the ability to operate at pace
- Excellent communicator across all levels of the organisation
- Analytical and data-driven
- Resilient and adaptable in a fast-moving, high-growth environment
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