Opportunity Brief: Head of Commercial - Gemini Rail Group
Ford & Stanley Executive Search (Part of the Ford & Stanley Group) are specialists in Executive Interim and Permanent appointments to the UK & North American, Rail, Engineering and General Manufacturing Industries.
We have been exclusively entrusted and appointed by Gemini Rail Group on a retained search for a Head of Commercial that will be pivotal in ensuring the continued growth and evolution of the business.
Below you will find an 'opportunity brief' developed from notes taken during the scoping meeting (Situational Discovery) held between the Business Manager & Research Manager of F&S Executive Search and the Gemini Rail Group Chief Operating Officer. 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 Statement:
"We are at a stage in our journey where, due to the volume of current and future pipeline of work, we need to invest and develop in our Commercial function"
"Due to nature of a fast-paced SME, we are seeking a candidate who is happy to switch from being strategic to rolling up their selves and getting stuck in operationally."
"We are ideally seeking a Commercial Manager or Senior CM ready for a step up in their career to Head of"
The Opportunity
Who are Gemini Rail Group?
Our history
- Wolverton railway works was established in Wolverton, Buckinghamshire, by the London and Birmingham Railway Company in 1838 at the midpoint of the 112 miles-long route from London to Birmingham. In 1865 Wolverton was designated as the LNWR Carriage Works, eventually becoming the largest carriage works in the UK. In 1901, Wolverton was the first railway works to use electricity for lighting and driving machinery throughout and had a workforce rising to 4000 people.
- Post-war it continued its carriage construction work, including making large numbers of the all-new British Railways Mark 1 carriage, until the intervention of Dr. Beeching. In 1962, the works was downgraded to a repair facility, with the last new vehicle being completed in 1963. By 1964 the workforce had dropped from 4000 to 2000.
- More recently in February 1986 British Rail Engineering Limited split into two new groups, with Wolverton becoming part of the new BR Maintenance Group, which reduced staff to 850.
- Following ownership by Siemens Babcock, Alstom, Railcare and Knorr-Bremse, the new company is now owned by Mutares AG and operates under the name of Gemini Rail Services, offering a full range of market leading vehicle overhaul and modernisation services.
- Our Vision Delivering innovative solutions to enable better journeys.
- Our Mission Building on our experience to become the preferred provider of innovative rolling stock upgrades for the UK rail market.
- Our People We are proud to bring together a unique team that has a wealth of experience in rail and other diverse industries. This team are dedicated to growing and diversifying Gemini Rail Services through flexibility, partnership, collaboration with a forward-thinking can-do approach.
- Our team currently brings together more than 300 people across the UK, from Engineering, Project Management, Technical and business support functions, and we believe that everyone in that team has a vital role in our future.
- Our offices and facilities are based the historic Wolverton Works. We offer a range of unique capabilities in both own-site and depot-based solutions.
- Our History We bring together many years' experience in a Rail Market that is evolving at an ever-increasing pace. This earned trust makes us the partner of choice to provide innovative and competitive life cycle solutions to our customers throughout the Rail industry and makes us a vital part of their success.
- Our Approach Safety and quality are essential requirements for every project Gemini Rail Services undertake. Our facilities and processes meet the most exacting safety standards and deliver assured quality in everything we do. We have a strong ethos and are committed to doing business in an ethical and collaborative way - both internally with staff and suppliers, and externally with customers and the community.
- The Future Gemini Rail Services is at the forefront of developing products and solutions that will have a positive impact and enable a more sustainable railway. GemEco is leading the way to develop new and hybrid technologies on existing rolling stock and will put Gemini on the map as the leading company for existing rail vehicle hybrid conversions.
Our Values
Our values were developed by utilising feedback from employee surveys and key working groups. These values embrace the best of what we are today and combine with what we want to be going forward as a thriving, sustainable organisation.
- Demonstrating togetherness - In our business, we look after each other. This means engaging honestly with our colleagues, supporting each other when we need it, speaking with one voice to the outside world and working toward common goals.
- Knowing what to do - We pride ourselves on the breadth and depth of the knowledge that we have in the business and being a dependable expert for our customers. To maintain and grow our expertise we actively focus on developing our people and managing competency across the team.
- Doing the right thing - We always do the right thing in how we interact with our people, how we look after our planet, having strong, fair relationships with our customers and suppliers, and ensuring our solutions are delivered safely and remain safe in use.
- Delivering on our commitments - When