Operations Manager

Equal Resourcing; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 81,000 - 99,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid working

Senior leadership

Autonomy

Job summary

Equal Resourcing is seeking an experienced General Manager / Operations Manager to take day-to-day ownership of a London-based scaffolding and access solutions contractor. The role involves running the business day-to-day on behalf of the Directors, with hybrid working and regular office attendance as required.

You will manage contracts, resourcing, and commercial performance, while leading operations, design and site management teams to deliver projects safely, on time and within budget.

Qualifications

• Proven track record running or senior-managing scaffolding or access solutions business
• Strong commercial acumen with margin performance
• Confident leader with experience developing teams across operations, commercial and site functions
• Solid knowledge of scaffolding health & safety, compliance and industry standards
• Experience managing multiple live projects and client relationships

Responsibilities

• Taking overall operational ownership of the business, including day-to-day decision-making across contracts, resourcing, commercial performance and compliance
• Managing and developing the operations, commercial, design and site management teams, setting structure, accountability and performance standards
• Overseeing the live project pipeline to ensure jobs are delivered safely, on time, to specification and on budget
• Working with Directors on commercial strategy, pricing, margin control and growth planning
• Owning health & safety, compliance and quality standards across all projects, ensuring accreditation and industry standards are met
• Building relationships with key clients, main contractors and supply chain partners
• Improving internal systems, processes and reporting to support scaling
• Supporting recruitment and development of scaffolders and support staff
• Escalation point for operational issues to free Directors for strategic priorities

Skills

P&L responsibility

Senior leadership

Operations management

Scaffolding industry knowledge

Team development

Safety & compliance knowledge

Client relationship management

Job description

Salary £90,000 basic, plus benefits package

Stratford (South East based, need to be open to travel to weekly meetings)

Full-time / Permanent

Our client is a well-established and fast-growing scaffolding and access solutions contractor operating across London and the wider South East. They deliver commercial, residential and specialist access projects – including temporary roofs, edge protection, stair towers, hoists and bespoke scaffold design – for a loyal base of main contractors, developers and property professionals.

With a strong reputation for safety, reliability and quality of build, the business has built consistent year-on-year growth and now has multiple live and ongoing projects running simultaneously. As the team and project pipeline continue to expand, they are looking to bring in an experienced General Manager / Operations Manager to take day-to-day ownership of the business and free up the leadership team to focus on strategic growth.

This is a pivotal, business-critical hire. You will take full operational control of the company – effectively running the business day-to-day on behalf of the Directors – while they step back into a more strategic, ownership-level role. You do not need to be scaffolding-trained or site-based full time, but you must have genuine, credible experience of running a scaffolding or access solutions business, or of leading operations within one at a senior level. Candidates without hands-on scaffolding sector knowledge will not be considered.

Key responsibilities include:

• Taking overall operational ownership of the business, including day-to-day decision-making across contracts, resourcing, commercial performance and compliance
• Managing and developing the operations, commercial, design and site management teams, setting clear structure, accountability and performance standards
• Overseeing the live project pipeline to ensure jobs are delivered safely, on time, to specification and on budget
• Working closely with the Directors on commercial strategy, pricing, margin control and growth planning
• Owning health & safety, compliance and quality standards across all projects, ensuring accreditation and industry standards (e.g. CHAS, TG20, NASC guidance) are consistently met
• Building and protecting relationships with key clients, main contractors and supply chain partners
• Improving internal systems, processes and reporting to support a scaling business
• Supporting recruitment, retention and development of scaffolders and support staff as the team grows
• Acting as a key point of escalation for operational issues, freeing the Directors to focus on strategic priorities

ABOUT YOU

• Proven track record running or senior-managing a scaffolding, access solutions or specialist temporary works contractor – this is non-negotiable
• Strong commercial acumen, comfortable owning P&L responsibility and margin performance
• Confident, credible leader who can manage and develop teams across operations, commercial and site functions
• Solid working knowledge of scaffolding health & safety, compliance and industry standards
• Experience managing multiple live projects and client relationships simultaneously
• Comfortable operating at a senior, semi-autonomous level, reporting directly into company Directors
• Based within a commutable distance of London/the Home Counties, with flexibility to be in the office regularly (Chelmsford, Kensington or Harrow) as needed

SALARY AND BENEFITS

• £90,000 basic salary, with a benefits package to be discussed at interview
• A genuinely senior, high-impact role with real autonomy and influence over the direction of the business
• The opportunity to step into a business that is already established, profitable and growing, rather than a turnaround or start-up situation
• Hybrid working, you will not be required on-site every day, but flexibility to attend company offices as needed is essential
• Direct access to, and partnership with, the company's ownership

Reference Number: LMP0

Our client can only consider applications from candidates with a valid legal right to work in the United Kingdom.