Creating your own virtual company

Tell us about b:ssec

Building Services Sustainability and Environmental Consultancy or b:ssec provides carbon reduction consultancy services to the private and public sectors. I set up the company in 2005 and it now employs five staff. What makes b:ssec different is that it operates from a virtual office; employees work from home, or anywhere with internet access, and we have regular team meetings in local restaurants and coffee shops - ok, and in the pub.

Why set up a virtual consultancy?

As a consultant working for a traditional office-based consultancy, my business carbon footprint was 5.6 tonnes CO2 per year. Bearing in mind that the highest carbon footprints in the world are 5.85 tonnes per person and the typical European carbon footprint is only 2.31 tonnes, I was horrified. My business carbon footprint is now 0.88 tonnes per year and lost time spent travelling has been reduced from 528 hours to 75 hours per year. I feel that the work/life balance has been restored.

Did you base BSSEC on a particular model?

I was aware of IT firms working in virtual offices and a university friend produced a paper on the paperless office back in 1995, so the thought had been there for a few years. Also, my father has run a successful mechanical services contracting business from home for more than 30 years, so I guess I grew up with a different perspective to working.

What are the practicalities of setting up a virtual working environment?

Setting up a business is the difficult bit. Setting up a virtual office was quite straightforward with the right IT provider. I used a company called BITS (www.bits-solutions.co.uk). The IT solution uses shared servers located in secure data centres, all accessible via the internet and backed up daily to a different remote server.

We work in a close team and future growth will be based upon teams of four, reporting back to an associate who would then report back to a director. We target the time spent on every commission and assess feedback from timesheets and the quality of work produced.

Are there any drawbacks?

You need a good office set up at home or a good hot desk arrangement with a local organisation. That said, we helped our employees with financial benefits to set up a home office. I sometimes miss the general chats and laughs that go on in the office – but we do get that from our meetings in restaurants and pubs.

How does it affect your work with clients?

I find that we work much closer with them as we are naturally wanting to spend more time on customers premises for social contact. We can also work from their premises which, when appropriate, is a positive thing to do.

The response from our clients, including the Carbon Trust, local authorities, charities and education and industrial sectors, is very positive. It puts a tick in their Corporate Social Responsibility box for clients.

Any tips for other engineers thinking of going down this route?

Go for it! Do it today!

To find out more about b:ssec (www.bssec.co.uk) please contact Paul Bennett at paul@bssec.co.uk