Head of Assets and Supply Chain

Opportunity Brief: Head of Supply Chain and Assets

Ford & Stanley Executive Search (Part of the Ford & Stanley Group) are an award-winning Executive search firm to the UK, North American and European Engineering, Technology, Sustainability & Heavy Manufacturing industries.

Our search directors, search consultants and in-house research team specialise in all vertical & horizontal functions of our clients’ leadership requirements with expertise spanning engineering, commercial, procurement, HR, IT, finance, HSQE, sales, projects, operations and c-suite.

We are trusted by over 100 organisations when they seek to make a leadership appointment, be that a permanent appointment or an interim solution.

We have been appointed on a retained search for a Head of Supply Chain and Assets.

Below you will find an ‘opportunity brief’ developed from notes taken during the scoping meeting (Situational Discovery) held between the Business Manager and Research Manager of Ford & Stanley Executive Search along with the Managing Director and HR Manager of our client. This brief is designed to give candidates a deeper insight into the opportunity inherent within the role, the challenges the role presents and provide access to the detail that sits behind the job specification.

Client Opportunity Statements:

“Integral to the success of our business is the timely availability of assets to our clients. To put it simply, we cannot achieve this without strong management of our asset portfolio and supply chain. As a result, we are keen to bring an individual into the business who can build strong and lasting relationships with our supply chain to allow us to operate at the highest levels”

 “We are in the midst of implementing an exciting and innovative project and a new business system. What this means is that almost overnight we will have access to more data than ever before. It’s important for us that our new senior leadership member is passionate about utilising this data to drive efficiencies and influence commercial decision-making.”

 “We all ‘roll our sleeves up’ and work closely to ensure the success of the business. Our new Head of Supply Chain and Assets will be no exception and it’s important that the incoming individual genuinely buys into this.”

The Opportunity:

Challenges expected within the first 12 months include:

1. The incoming Head of Supply Chain & Assets will encounter several unstructured relationships with suppliers. This has led to challenging lead times and the delivery of parts being tough to manage and predict.
2. Whilst the business is performing well, it’s worth noting that the incoming Head of Supply Chain & Assets may well struggle with the fast paced and intense nature of the business.
3. Due to the landscape of the supplier base and parts required, it is not uncommon for the business to be limited to one option for certain parts. This can present a supplier risk and significantly increases the emphasis on strong relationships with supply chain partners.

 Key deliverables within the first 12 months include:

1. The business will have new contracts with the supply chain complete with modern KPI’s, SLAs, and strong relationships that lay the foundations for mutually beneficial relationships in the future.
2. Ensuring a key project is completed with a thorough business case and understanding of the value the project could add to the businesses. If it is deemed the project is viable, we expect to be mid-implementation by this point.
3. Driving the use of their system and ensuring it is being used efficiently with the business is getting the most out of the data and ensuring its utilisation across the business.

Essential Hard Skills (Skills & Experience)

• Strong experience working in an engineering environment complete with an appreciation of technical skillsets.
• Experience developing a supply chain, managing risk and implementation of KPI’s to match business needs.
• Strong track record of being accountable for assets and supplier relations, able to articulate personal achievement and contribution.
• Familiarity operating within a business that often has elements of ‘single point failure’ within its supply chain.
• Degree calibre candidate able to think analytically and work strategically within the business.
• A ‘hands-on’ worker, capable of operating in a matrix, SME environment.

Essential Soft Skills (Attributes & Behaviours)

• Analytical mindset able to process the data available and utilise it to make business decisions.
• Strong communication skills, able to influence internal and external stakeholders (Able to be firm but fair).
• Understands and values the importance of a positive culture in an SME business.
• Strong sense of humour – this will be vital in ensuring this individual integrates well into the team.
• A genuine team player who values internal collaboration.

Working Arrangements & Location:

 Whilst the role is hybrid/flexible it is expected that the successful candidate will want to invest time in getting to know key stakeholders, colleagues, and personalities within the company during the probation period, it is expected that the ideal candidate will be site-based in Birmingham for at least 3 days a week following probation.

Ford & Stanley Interview Process:

• 1st Stage – Formal Interview. Candidates are assessed on their suitability for the job in the context of the above and challenged on how the opportunity lines up with their career aspirations, motivations, and financial expectations.
• 2nd Stage – The ‘shortlist’. Candidates are asked to reflect on 1st and 2nd stages, providing evidence and discussion on how they match up to the key hard and soft skill essentials. Package requirements are reiterated and finalised.
• 3rd Stage – McQuaig Job Survey. Candidates are assessed against the McQuaig Job Survey to ensure they have the correct characteristics needed in the role.

Our Clients Interview Process:

• 1st Stage interview: With the Managing Director and HR Manager complete with a competency-based Q&A interview.
• 2nd Final Stage interview: Face-to-face interview on site with the Managing Director, HR Manager and other members of SLT, this will be a half-day interview and will involve a presentation (Topic TBC) and conversations with the wider senior leadership team to ensure buy-in from all parties.

Good to know:

• An innovative business behind the UK’s leading technology to significantly improve the safety in rail.
• The business is currently undergoing a project that will allow them to consider a wider partnership between the two businesses that will improve efficiencies.
• In conjunction with the leadership team this individual will essentially be accountable for the identification of parts to be placed onto the assets the process of sourcing parts and managing suppliers and ultimately applying the parts to the assets.
• This is a new role within the business and will be broken down into a supply chain focus (Main emphasis of the role) and an asset management focus.
• This role has arisen due to a retirement in the team (Departs next March, moving to part-time in Q1 2025).
• It’s not a requirement that this individual comes complete with rail experience.
• Culturally, the team is close-knit, collaborative and non-hierarchical. There are several individuals who have been within the business for a significant amount of time.
• The business has made recent implementations to drive the business towards becoming data-led with the vision of implementing continuous improvement initiatives.
• The business is profitable, performing well, and has a turnover of £50-£100 million.
• This position currently has line management responsibility for a part-time administrator.

Supporting benefits

• Car allowance / Company car: £11,000 per year
• Bonus: 10%
• Pension 3% during probation and rising to 5% after probation and 7% after 5 years of service
• Holiday allowance: 25 + Bank holidays with the option to purchase an additional 5 day’s leave.
• Eyesight tests
• Health club membership: £250 per year (After probation)
• Private medical screening (After probation)
• Private Medical Insurance (After probation)
• Income Protection Scheme (After probation)
• Life insurance

Executive Search Delivery Team:

• Tom Norton – Business Manager (Client Recommendations/Advisory, Offer Negotiations, Headhunting, Networking)
• Oliver Nunn – Research Manager (Shortlisting, Offer Negotiations, Headhunting, Networking, Research, Search, Longlisting, Interviews, Data & Market Intel)
• Ralitsa Kuzeva – Executive Assistant (Diary Management, Coordination, Candidate Experience)

About Ford & Stanley Executive Search:

Ford & Stanley Talent Services Group are in the business of people and performance. Our mission is to create one million better workdays through facilitating great recruitment, leadership and occupational mental fitness. We support our clients in their most challenging business areas – recruiting, developing and retaining the best talent from shop floor to boardroom.

1. Ford & Stanley TalentWise – Business specialising in blue-collar trade & technical services – permanent and temporary.
2. Ford & Stanley Recruitment – Business specialising in white collar spanning all company functions with specialist verticals within Digital, Rail Engineering, Civils & Infrastructure, General Manufacturing, Supply Chain & Logistics both permanent and contract.
3. Ford & Stanley Executive Search – Business specialising in Executive Search & Executive Interim Solutions in the UK, North America, Middle East and Europe.
4. Ford & Stanley Genius Performance – Performance is always accelerated when good people are coached, inspired, trained and focused in the right way.

Ford & Stanley Talent Services Group Ltd is a Disability Confident employer that is committed to a policy of equal opportunities for all opportunity seekers. We shall adhere to such a policy at all times and will review on an on-going basis all aspects of recruitment to avoid unlawful or undesirable discrimination. We will treat everyone equally irrespective sex, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, marital or civil partnership status, age, disability, colour, race, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief or political beliefs and we place an obligation upon all staff to respect and act in accordance with the policy.

Services advertised by Ford & Stanley are that of an employment consultancy business.