Newly appointed as Group HR Manager for Kinovo Group, we caught up with Lauren Parkinson about her people plans for the business. With a 17-year generalist HR career, the last eight of which have been in the construction sector, Lauren is no stranger to some of the biggest challenges facing contractors when it comes to HR.

Lauren comments: “Anyone who knows me, knows how passionate I am about people, and about giving everyone equal chances to develop fulfilling and vibrant careers. It was obvious to me immediately, that joining Kinovo meant I would be able to share these values across the business and through attracting, retaining and developing the right people in the right roles, will support the three-pillar strategy of Regulation, Regeneration and Renewables.

“HR is a fast-changing discipline and businesses, whatever sector they’re in, need to continue to remain relevant and attractive to future employees. When you consider the latest statistics from Forbes which show over 75% of people want to work for a company that is trying to have a positive impact on the world, Kinovo is perfectly positioned to be the employer of choice. Working with our Social Value and Marketing Manager, Pippa Pang, I am keen to continue sharing all the amazing social value work that’s happening across Kinovo’s group of Purdy, R Dunham and Spokemead.

Start the education early

“When it comes to diversity, we all know the challenges we need to address in our sector. According to recent research from the Federation of Master Builders, only 2% of onsite workers are women; 6% are from the BAME community; 6% identify as disabled, and shockingly, 60% of LGBTQ+ employees have reported homophobic or derogatory abuse while carrying out their jobs. This has to change. It means our sector – which incidentally needs to recruit an additional 225,000 extra people by 2027 – is missing out on the huge potential of skills across these minority groups. We need to start educating about the fantastic opportunities in our sector when people are young. And when I say young, I mean in Years 8 or 9. This is something Kinovo has already started to do, through our Apprentice programmes and by visiting schools and sharing the broad range of careers we can offer as a business and for the sector overall. Personally, I am also excited to work for a plc that has so many women represented in senior roles. It’s so refreshing but I don’t want it to be ‘refreshing’ for future generations. I want it to be the norm.

Promoting from within

“Over my career, I’ve seen the benefits of promoting from within, something that Kinovo with its three businesses is in a strong position to do. We don’t want to operate in silos. Mutual benefits for both employees and us as an employer include boosted morale and motivation; faster onboarding, training and development; upskilling and multi-skilling; enhanced mutual loyalty and retention; and the understanding that we care and invest for the longer term. Importantly it also helps us to preserve and grow in-house knowledge and skills which is really important when you think of the huge lack of skilled operatives like electricians and gas engineers.

“For those who want a traditional clear progression ladder, we can offer that and support everyone on their journey. But sometimes you need to challenge the status quo and think outside the box which I am a keen advocate of promoting sideways, not just up. For some people, a ‘squiggly’ career path is what works for them and as a group we can make this work too. In summary it’s about being a flexible organisation and an employer of choice.

“Finally, no piece about HR would be complete without referencing the huge importance sustainable employers must now be placing on well-being of their people. I’m a Mental Health first aider and I’m keen to formalise our mental health strategy across the business, so that anyone who is struggling, at any time, has a safe place to go to chat.

“Kinovo is an exciting place to be right now. It’s so fantastic to be involved with such a people-focused business that really does put its team at the heart and forefront of everything it does.”

If you’re keen to join a team where people really matter, check out current vacancies.

Kinovo Group plc – Jobs – Find a job, build a career (kinovoplc.com)