Middlemarch targets new ecological opportunities after leadership and management boost

Giving power to its people has helped one of the UK’s leading biodiversity consultancies continue to win contracts and create new jobs.

Middlemarch Environmental, which provides creative ecological solutions for private and public sector developers, has withstood the downturns of the marketplace by providing ‘business skills’ to its technical experts and diversifying into additional markets.

Backed by Business Link West Midlands Leadership and Management (L&M) Programme, the wholly-owned subsidiary of the Warwickshire Wildlife Trust has successfully introduced a new management structure that has seen it become more agile in meeting client requirements, identified a host of efficiency improvements and reduced costs by 10%.

It comes on the back of a solid year for Middlemarch, which has resulted in turnover staying above the £3m level as it switched its attention to working on major public sector infrastructure projects, including the crucial M1 Junction 19 work that is so important to keeping the region moving.

“The services we offer are diverse and range from ecological field survey and assessment through to planning and design to implementation and site management,” explained Dr Philip Fermor, who has been Managing Director at the organisation since 1999.

“Our team of technical experts has more than 300 years’ experience behind them of ensuring private and public sector developers meet their biodiversity policy and that no habitats or wildlife are displaced or destroyed as a result of new construction work.”

He continued: “This could involve carrying out arboricultural assessments, advising on the legal responsibilities towards protected species and even habitat creation in case of relocation issues.

“The difference we make can be remarkable and helps to speed the entire development process up, not to mention offsetting any costly legal fees if you fall foul of legislation.”

Middlemarch, which has its head office in Coventry, has built up an enviable list of public sector and blue chip clients, including Advantage West Midlands, Birse, Carillion, Heathrow and Severn Trent Water.

Its ongoing success has seen profits of £1.5m directed to the Warwickshire Wildlife Trust since 1994 and workforce levels rise to 34 technical experts and support staff, with the scale of the growth focusing the company’s attention towards a more robust business plan for the future.

“This is where Business Link West Midlands’ Leadership and Management Programme came into its own,” continued Philip.

“We were put in touch with specialist adviser Jane Rogers, who - over the course of eight months - worked with us on changing the philosophy of the business so that it was people inclusive and committed to developing new commercial skills to add to their expertise in their chosen fields.

“This gave us the opportunity to bring in a dedicated training company to work with new members of the enlarged management team, not to mention looking at succession planning and freeing up my time to explore new market opportunities.

“The support was fantastic, expertly delivered and exactly what we needed. I have no doubt it helped us shrug off the effects of the recent downturn and, importantly, put us in a position to attack new opportunities when growth returns to the UK.”

Business Link’s Leadership and Management service focuses on encouraging companies to boost the skills of their managers in the pursuit of greater efficiencies and bottom line business benefits.

A dedicated specialist mentor and facilitator works with members of the board and the senior management team for up to six days initially, identifying the outcomes required and the key performance indicators for boosting performance, skills and facilitating change.

By working through an agreed plan, business leaders can enable their teams by bringing in the right training to address areas, such as business strategy, change management and management effectiveness.

Jane Rogers, L&M Adviser, went on to add: “Middlemarch Environmental is a specialist in what they do and are hugely successful at winning and completing new work.

“They had reached the stage of their growth when they needed to look at ways of strengthening the management team and giving more ownership of decisions to key personnel.”

She concluded: “We identified the right support and have worked with them to upskill their staff, whilst also looking at putting some succession planning in place. The end result has been a highly efficient company and one that is keen to continue to expand at pace.”

In addition to its core activities, Middlemarch Environmental is developing more creative ecological solutions and is currently in talks with three large habitat schemes in York and Kent.