ISS reshapes private sector business as it targets growth in UK and Ireland

Facilities management group appoints Charlie McCarthy to its leadership team as it divides its former Office and Production operation and sets its sights on faster expansion

ISS is restructuring its private sector operations in Britain and Ireland as the facilities management group seeks to sharpen its focus on financial services and accelerate growth across its business and industry division.

The company has appointed Charlie McCarthy as Segment Director for Business & Industry and Ireland, completing its UK and Ireland Country Leadership Team. He will take up the position on September 1 and report directly to Scott Davies, chief executive of ISS UK & Ireland.

The appointment accompanies a broader reorganisation of the company's private sector business following the departure of Andrew Wilkinson, formerly chief operating officer for Office & Production, who has moved to lead ISS Group's Barclays Global Key Account.

Rather than replace Wilkinson directly, ISS has divided the former Office & Production segment into two operations.

Financial Services will encompass Barclays UK, banking and Livv, while the newly defined Business & Industry division will cover professional services, production, technology and the company's operations in Ireland.

The restructuring is intended to bring individual business areas closer to senior management and give ISS greater scope to develop more specialised propositions for the industries it serves.

It also provides an indication of where the company believes some of its more significant growth opportunities now lie.

ISS has said that Business & Industry, including Ireland, could become the fastest growing part of its UK and Irish operation over the medium to long term.

A new leadership structure

McCarthy joins ISS following a 23 year career in facilities management, having held senior positions at Mitie, Compass and Interserve.

Most recently, he served as Managing Director of JLL EMEA, where ISS says he was responsible for driving revenue growth across operations spanning 57 countries.

His appointment follows that of Marlies Hoogeboom, who was named Segment Director for Financial Services in June.

Together, the appointments establish the leadership structure around the two divisions created from the former Office & Production operation.

For McCarthy, the immediate task will extend beyond managing existing contracts. ISS wants the Business & Industry operation to develop more distinct propositions for individual sectors while directing investment towards areas where the company believes it can command a stronger competitive position.

Ireland appears to be a particular focus.

ISS believes there is an opportunity to make greater use of its existing products, capabilities and investment in the Irish market, while simultaneously pursuing growth among corporate customers elsewhere in the private sector.

Scott Davies, chief executive of ISS UK & Ireland, said McCarthy's experience would be central to those ambitions.

“The changing business of the workplace”

Davies said the new structure should also improve operational effectiveness through greater standardisation and the sharing of best practice across the company.

The restructuring comes as the facilities management industry continues to adapt to changes in how large companies use offices and other workplaces.

The sector increasingly extends beyond the traditional provision of cleaning, maintenance and catering. Large facilities management companies are competing to manage more complex workplace environments for multinational clients, while employers continue to reconsider how their property portfolios should operate following the shift towards hybrid working.

For a business of ISS's scale, the ability to offer different propositions to banks, technology companies, professional services firms and industrial customers is therefore becoming increasingly important.

ISS operates in more than 30 countries and employs more than 27,000 people across Britain and Ireland alone.

Its decision to separate financial services from the broader business and industry operation suggests the company sees sufficient differences between those markets to warrant dedicated leadership.

It also gives McCarthy a clear growth mandate.

With the leadership team now in place, ISS will be looking to turn a management restructure into commercial expansion, particularly in Ireland and across the corporate sectors where it believes its existing scale can be put to greater use.