Jess Rose, Head of HR & Ryan Geldard, Director at M-AR

“...all we’ve ever wanted to do, is where other people run away from things, we lean into things.” This is from Ryan Geldard, Director at modular building specialist M-AR Offsite, where adaptability to change is key.

We sit down with Ryan and Head of HR, Jess Rose for this episode to get their insights on MMC and growing a business in today’s market. M-AR started around 15 years ago creating modular buildings for hire, before moving into manufacturing. They’ve always aimed to stay flexible to what customers are asking for, and adaptable to changes in the world.

Ryan and Jess address the challenges that they’ve faced with finding the right people with the right values and attributes, not just those with a long career history. We speak about scaling and how, along with remote working, workforces are becoming disconnected. Jess shares some tactics they’ve used to keep their people connected.

We also speak about the pay challenges that many sectors are facing and what M-AR has offered staff as support. We go into how motivations, particularly for young people are changing and how M-AR’s values have been put across to attract them. As well as creating a more inclusive environment and tackling stereotypes, particularly in the typically male-dominated sector of construction. Ryan and Jess share their thoughts on remote working and what they’re offering to their staff.

In this episode, we cover:

• The importance of flexibility and adaptability in today’s market
• Challenges with finding the right people
• Tactics M-AR has used to keep the workforce connected as the business grows
• How M-AR has tackled pay challenges
• Finding people with the right experiences and attributes, not just with a breadth of experience
• Remote working options for varying preferences
• The dual benefits for senior people working with less experienced people
• How MMC is set to grow in the future and choosing the right location for factories
• How the housing sector can become more inclusive and attract new talent