Dan Maher - Leadership in the construction industry, where public and private sectors meet

Nottingham Business School Business Leaders

Episode 58

SUMMARY

Dan Maher – Leadership in the construction industry, where public and private sectors meet

Dan Maher has spent more than four decades in and around the construction industry.

He is now MD of both Via East Midlands and Arc Partnership, two companies providing services for Nottinghamshire County Council. But he started his career as a teenage apprentice at Sheffield City Council.

In Episode 58 of the Nottingham Business School’s Business Leaders’ podcast, Dan tells Honorary Visiting Professor Mike Sassi about people-centric culture, walking the business… and the differences between working in the public and private sector.

INTRODUCTION

• Dan Maher is MD of Arc Partnership and Via East Midlands. Both companies are Alternative Service Delivery Models established by Nottinghamshire County Council.

• The companies employ more than 800 staff and have a combined annual turnover of more than £35m.

• Arc Partnership delivers property design, consultancy, planning, regeneration, project management, emergency, reactive, compliance asset management and planned services on behalf of the council

• Via East Midlands does third-party work with both public and private-sector organisations and is a public contracting authority.

• Via delivers design and consultancy services, highway maintenance, construction, signals and lighting, environmental management, fleet services and road safety. It also provides highway management services to the council.

• Dan has more than 41 years of experience within construction, across both the Public and Private Sectors.

• He left school at 18, in 1983, and joined Sheffield City Council as a management trainee. The council subsequently sponsored him through an MSc in Human Resources Management at Sheffield Hallam University.

• Later in his career, Dan joined Kier Group as a Development Director. He worked at Kier for 11 years, with his final role being Operations Director for the East of England.

• In 2016 he was appointed MD Arc Property Services Partnership, a joint venture between Nottinghamshire County Council and Scape Group.

• In 2022 Dan took on an additional role as MD of Via East Midlands.

LEADERSHIP TAKEAWAYS from Dan Maher, MD of Via East Midlands and Arc Partnership…

“First impressions matter. Your reputation is either won or lost within the first two or three weeks of a new job.”

“It’s not always about being the brightest person in the room. But it’s often about having the strongest work ethic.“

“I’ve always tried to create a people-centric culture wherever I’ve worked. Because [as a leader] people are your greatest asset.“

“Early in my career I decided I had to appoint people who were better than me – and not be scared of that.”

“My advice to future leaders? Be patient! I’ve seen too many people want to develop their careers too quickly. You are much better off getting a broad range of experience with a broad range of organisations. And trying to enjoy life at the same time!“

“Being a good leader is all about knowing when to take on another person‘s problems – and when to leave the problem with them so they can learn. Knowing when - and when not - to step in, is important.“

“As a leader, I have to work on the business rather than in the business. But there is still nothing better than walking the job… talking to architects, consultants, the guys who are mending potholes all day... They appreciate it.”

“Having a car parking space with an MD‘s name on it is bureaucratic graffiti.”

“Leadership is all about collaboration. It’s about having patience and taking the time to understand other people.“

RELATED LINKS

If you enjoyed this episode NBS Business Leaders’ Podcast with Dan Maher, listen to previous shows with…

• The CMO of Boots UK Pete Markey

• The CEO of Capital One UK Lucy Hagues MBE

• Sean Bowles, MD at Morgan Sindall