Northern guile

The founder of Turner & Townsend, Jeff Townsend, once said: "We'll never be in London, we'll never be in Birmingham and we'll never be international." Today the firm has substantial offices in London, Birmingham and another 11 branches spread across the UK. Not to mention a foothold in every continent. So what went wrong?

Tim Wray, chairman of T&T, says that although the firm is jostling for global business with the likes of Davis Langdon and Gardiner & Theobald it retains the old founder's no-nonsense philosophy. Its culture is different to the large London-based players, he insists. For a start, T&T's HQ remains in Leeds and this is where Wray himself is based. A proud Yorkshireman, he says the culture of T&T is strictly Northern, which appears to translate into down to earth. For example, the management structure is simple. Wray has two MDs: Tom Harrison runs the UK and Vince Clancy runs international operations.

Similarly, 57-year-old Wray has only ever had one job interview. He joined T&T as a junior QS straight from college after getting his HND in building economics and has been with the firm ever since.

It all sounds a bit conservative, and when I sit face to face with Wray his wary manner adds to this impression. He says he's guarded when meeting the press and eyes me with an amused but slightly suspicious expression throughout most of the interview.

Yet Wray is clearly not afraid of change. T&T looks very different now to when it was founded in Darlington in 1948. Wray says part of the firm's growth has been based on a flexible approach to sectors. "We were heavily involved in the oil and petrochemical business when there was one in the UK and moved on to the mining industry in the UK during the 1970s and 80s." Later T&T focused on the automotive industry, which it continues to do. "A few years ago we were not heavily in the commercial and retail sectors, that's changed now. We have just got onto the Sainsbury's framework and we also work for Tesco."

Neither is Wray intimidated by big projects. At present, public sector works and transport mega projects are some of the firm's key business lines. T&T has just won the role of programme manager on Dublin Airport's second terminal, a job worth between €170m (£116.2m) and €200m. It is also on the £715m Edinburgh tram link scheme, the BAA framework, including T5, and the £300-£400m project to rebuild the St Mary's Hospital in Paddington, London.

Major change

Wray has overseen the most significant period of change at the firm since he took over the helm from chairman Jeff Smith in 1999. Back then the firm had around 500 staff and a £28-£30m turnover. Since, it has been growing at an impressive 25% a year. It now turns over £115-£120m, employs 1,750 staff and Wray is expecting to announce profits of £12.5-£13m for 2005. Last year the firm made a £10.6m profit on a £75m turnover.

A major change under Wray's leadership was the shift last May to LLP status. Although a bold move, this was done in the kind of cautious way that Jeff Townsend would probably approve of. Wray says he didn't move to LLP as soon as it became possible, about five years ago, because he was waiting to see how other LLPs would get on first. "I suppose you could call it Northern guile," he says.

For the firms that took the plunge earlier, recent months have permitted the first public peak at their inner workings, making for some interesting comparisons. For instance, we now know that while Davis Langdon's boss Rob Smith took home £500,000 last year, G&T's top man made £750,000.

Wray won't be drawn on where he fits in on the scale, even though it will be in the public domain in July when the firm makes its first annual results statement. Nonetheless he gets his defence in early. Wray narrows his eyes and asks if I think the top brass at G&T and Davis Langdon are earning too much. He then points to the pay packets of the heads of consultancies in other sectors, such as accounting, implying that these are a lot heftier than those of QS bosses.

At an LLP, managers "don't have shares tucked away" as they likely would at a public company, Wray adds ."If you don't achieve as a partner, you don't get paid, but if you're a chief executive you're on an annual salary." However, he concedes that shares also lose their value if the management doesn't perform.

Worlds apart

Wray repeats the old founder's remark about never moving out of northern England with a wry smile because his own hallmark has been global expansion. T&T has 49 offices around the world, including two in China, eight in Australia, 11 in Africa, two in North America and several in Europe. Much of this growth was under Wray, some of it through small acquisitions.

For example, T&T set up shop in Australia three years ago with a team of 20 specialising in the oil, gas and mining sectors around Brisbane and Perth. In September 2005 the firm bought local consultants Rawlinsons, boosting its presence to 100 staff in eight offices and expanding into all areas of the private and public sectors. The most recent international development was opening a 10-person office in Moscow late last year.

Wray's global drive is no doubt inspired by personal experience. In 1981 he was the first person at T&T to be sent abroad when he was asked to set up an office in South Africa. The firm had one client in Johannesburg, Shell. "I thought I'd be there for two years but stayed for 20," he says. He moved with his wife and three girls under five. "It was a huge ordeal, from finding our way from the airport to getting on with a social life." But the move paid off. Wray earned his stripes and T&T now has a 200-strong operation in Southern Africa, which has worked on projects such as the £48m domestic terminal at Jan Smuts International Airport in Johannesburg.

These days Wray uses the chance of moving abroad in the fight to attract and keep staff. "I was ‘sent away', now it's about giving people opportunities. It's a useful recruitment tool."

Jeff Townsend, who was so set against the type of expansion Wray has spearheaded, is now 80 and retired. He catches up with Wray occassionally and watches the global developments with what sounds like bemused interest.

The next plan is to roll out the full range of services offered in the UK on a worldwide scale. Further acquisitions are "unlikely", Wray adds. He finishes by saying he has no plans to retire as yet and will stay in the job as long as he still enjoys it. However, he has a glint in his eye suggesting he might have a more concrete plan up his sleeve.