Having started his career as a trainee Quantity Surveyor with a major national contractor, he progressed through increasingly senior commercial roles, culminating in leadership positions where he held full profit and loss accountability, has overseen complex negotiations, managed risks, and driven business turnarounds.

Richard has built and led high-performing commercial and operational teams, and consistently delivered improved margins through astute commercial leadership, robust risk management, and a commitment to ethical and people centred practices.  He rejects unreasonable and adversarial short-term tactics such as 'subbie bashing' - "if a business cannot achieve a reasonable profit without abusing others, then it doesn’t deserve to be in business."

Richard says of himself:

"Over the years, I’ve built a diverse and multifaceted career that reflects my strength, tenacity and adaptability; merging commercial ability with unwavering focus on delivering results.  I’ve worked across the supply chain, gaining a unique and balanced industry perspective.  Knowledge that I use daily to help guide my approach to navigating complex project delivery and business management issues with empathy, whilst also managing risk and commercial priorities.  Too often people have a singularly-focused, short-term approach, which fails to grasp the big picture. 

What differentiates me is not only technical competence, but also a values-led leadership style.  I am driven by quality outcomes, long-term thinking, and the human element of construction - be that in the legacy of the built environment, the mentoring and development of people, or the building of lasting relationships with clients and the wider supply chain."