Today, we’re hearing from Senior Project Manager Tom Warnes. Tom has been an integral part of Greyfriars since 2022 and has seen the team through huge changes including an office move and the company doubling in size.
Tom joined Greyfriars with over two decades of site management experience in the construction industry. His extensive background includes fifteen years as a site manager and nine years as a site engineer. Tom brings a highly technical understanding of construction processes and details, from new builds and extensions to refurbishments of live schools and local government industrial units.
At Greyfriars, Tom is responsible for overseeing project management across various complex construction, civil engineering, and infrastructure projects. His portfolio includes projects of major regional significance, such as the Operations & Maintenance Hub in Great Yarmouth, the redevelopment of Great Yarmouth’s Marketplace and the revitalisation of Norwich’s Hay Hill.
In his free time, Tom is an avid photographer and many of the project photos on our website and social media are his work, some of which we’ve featured throughout this article.
With the skill gap growing in the construction industry, what inspired you to join this field, and how can we encourage the younger generation to get involved?
Having a Dad who was an engineer set me on the path of being an engineer myself, although I chose civil engineering, not mechanical engineering. Once on site I showed a natural understanding of the process, and the company soon offered to put me through college on day release – pretty much what would class as an apprenticeship these days. After more than twenty years as a Tier 1 main contractor I felt that my experience and knowledge wasn’t being used early enough in the process to really help the Client and I could see opportunities to get better value for money that I was too late to enact. So I looked into how I could get involved at an earlier stage in the process, and after deciding that pre-construction with a main contractor still wasn’t early enough, I looked to move into Client side project management.
The opportunity came up at that time with Greyfriars, which was serendipitous, so I took the leap and haven’t looked back since! I think my advice to the younger generation would be that the construction industry isn’t the stereotype that it is made out to be. There are fascinating people, from all walks of life, operating at every level throughout the industry. There are people out on site laying kerbs, carpenters installing everything from roof joists to kitchens and fire doors, plumbers and electricians installing technologically advanced systems, managers on sites, consultants and designers, there is something that can appeal to anyone. In East Anglia, especially I have often said, we are not a construction industry but a construction community – lots of people know each other and have worked in the industry for years, and there is a massive feeling of support within the consultants and contractors – it is a great thing to be a part of.
Your background as a Senior Site Manager brings a unique set of skills and perspectives to Greyfriars Project Management. How has this experience influenced the way you deliver projects?
Having come from a main contracting background I have an insight into what the challenges are going to be once the project goes into construction. One of our biggest jobs is to manage risk, so understanding risks early on is imperative. This adds so much value when carrying out the design, preparing the tender documents and also provides a valuable understanding of what the contractors are up against when they come across issues once the work is underway. My experience gives a very real understanding of the time pressures of delivering the project and how making good, educated, timely decisions on issues can have a huge impact on maintaining the programme, whilst avoiding those issues becoming commercial obstacles. My background gives me an understanding and sympathy with the contractor, and hopefully goes some way to building a trusting relationship between the two.
You have an impressive work history, having led major projects throughout East Anglia. Which project has been your favourite, and what was the biggest challenge you faced?
Having worked on projects ranging from the dualling of the A11 (£40m), bridge replacements, industrial units, medical centres, doctor surgeries, libraries, school refurbishments and extensions and everything in between there is a lot of choice! My favourite, looking back, is probably having been involved in the Hostry project at Norwich Cathedral. This was an intense, logistically challenging, project within a hugely historically sensitive setting. The project had archaeologists dig the foundations for us, so that was unusual for a start, we then had challenges with integrating the new building into the fabric of the old cloisters, all while organising deliveries to come outside of school drop off times (due to Norwich School being adjacent to the site), and installing a new water main through a known Saxon burial ground! Another notable project was my first one as a Site Manager out on my own, Poringland Library, only £0.5M, but a small tricky site abutting the existing community centre, and designed with polished, ‘snowcrete’ blocks which looked amazing when finished.
You’ve contributed lots of great photos to Greyfriars’ website and LinkedIn. Can you share some of your favourite photographs and the stories behind them?
Photography is a hobby I try to pursue when I get a spare few minutes away from the family! I’ve really enjoyed taking the pictures for GPM, rolling something I love into work. The photo shoot at O&M was really fun with Louis, and I was most pleased with my ‘hero’ shot, only managed by laying on the newly asphalted berth with my face pressed into the grille of an aco drain!
I also love going to the projects once they’re complete, giving not only the chance to take the finished pictures but chatting to the end users who are usually over the moon to have use of the new properties.
You’re known in the Greyfriars office for your dad jokes. What’s your best dad joke?
I’m concerned that I am known for my jokes, when I am clearly such a considerate, sensible, professional! But, that said, my favourite joke is:
Where do bad rainbows go?
Prism, but it’s only a light sentence.
What is your favourite thing about working at Greyfriars Project Management?
I think the people are what make Greyfriars special and is certainly one of my favourite things about the company. Jon is a great boss to work for, having a passion himself for delivering projects which shines through and sets the tone for the business. The company is big enough to handle any size project, with such varied experience and expertise on hand, but small enough to feel like a close-knit team. All of the staff are great to work with and it makes it a great place to come to work every day. That and the fact I’ve been here nearly three years, and they still laugh at my jokes.
What is your favourite part of working in construction, and what motivates you to get up in the morning?
I enjoy working towards delivering the end product, where we hand the keys over to a Client and end user and they are thrilled to have a new facility to use. Notably I had a teacher in tears at their new classroom, having moved from a tiny room with cold draughty windows and poor heating and stepping into a state-of-the-art classroom with underfloor heating, triple glazing, electronic whiteboards, and the most pleasing thing – a big cupboard for storing all their things! Seeing how we can deliver a scheme to make a difference to peoples everyday and working lives is incredible, and if we can do it on time and on budget, even better!
What do you think are the biggest challenges facing the construction industry today, and how can project and cost management help address them?
I can think of two key challenges that I think are important. Firstly, is the widely talked about skills shortage that the industry is facing. There are statistics that suggest up to 350,000 workers either retired or left the industry in the last five years, with figures of only around 20,000 apprentices joining each year, the biggest number being 33,000 for the year 22/23, with a completion rate of only 40% of those. That is a massive deficit, and it goes further than that. Most of the sites I manage, or visit have a significant proportion of their workforce that will be retiring in the next 5-10 years and unless we start training people now and passing on those invaluable life learnt skills, we will lose all of that experience. Whilst I believe college courses and universities are great, there is only so much you can learn in a classroom, and speaking from experience, you need to get out on site with muddy boots to learn what it is all about.
My second issue is something less spoken about and I think that is an underlying distrust between Clients and Contractors. Contracts like NEC4 help to stem some of this and encourage collaboration, but unless there is complete trust between both parties this is only a different set of rules to play by, and each party will look to the clauses which best suit them should issues arise. Having worked both sides of the fence, I like to think that gives a unique perspective into each world and goes some way to bridge the gap between Client and Contractor. The aim has to be to project manage impartially, with good project management being simply to lead a team. I believe the key is remaining neutral and engaging with all parties to find solutions. I like to think that I can bring my knowledge and experience to the Client and Contractor and build the trust between them.
In your experience, what are the key factors to ensure a project stays on budget and on time, especially in large-scale projects?
I think the biggest factors are selecting the right people and businesses to work with and ensuring they are clear on the goals and timescales. An open and honest approach is essential, making sure that everyone identifies their own risks early on and provides mitigations. I’ve always told sub-contractors and suppliers, be honest about what you can deliver for us and when – if you tell me about an issue as soon as you know then I can manage and deal with it and it will be my issue, but if you don’t tell me there is a problem and just keep telling me what I want to hear then it most certainly will be your problem! This may be blunt, but I believe in collaboration and working through issues together.
What emerging trends in construction do you think will have the most significant impact on the industry in the next five years?
I think there will have to be a huge culture shift towards renewable energies in all that we do in construction, from the plant that we use, with the likes of JCB investing heavily in hydrogen fuelled plant, to the materials we use, such as carbon negative asphalts which are already available, and other low carbon products. It often feels the construction industry is behind the curve when it comes to new technology, but this needs driving forward to get to where it needs to be. I can see that AI will have its place in the industry somewhere, but quite where I don’t know. BIM was supposed to be the new big technology that was going to revolutionise the way we build, but I don’t feel that ever took off, and certainly is too expensive to use on smaller projects, so until the technology becomes affordable and shows a tangible cost saving I don’t think this will be pursued by Clients.
What advice would you give to someone starting their career in construction project management?
I think my advice to new professionals would be to keep your eyes and ears open and don’t be afraid to ask questions. Get yourself on site at every opportunity and speak to the team who are doing the work, find out what they are doing, what the issues are, what the real risks are, what their biggest delays and influencing factors are to their working day and most importantly understand the process. Ask questions of everybody and don’t be afraid to make some mistakes along the way!
How do you maintain a healthy work-life balance, especially when managing large and demanding projects?
Whilst most people would say the secret is not to take your work home with you (and I do think that’s important), I think there is more to it. It’s about ensuring there is enough time away from work during the day, making sure you make time for yourself and to step away from the emails!
The biggest change I’ve noticed when moving from main contracting to project management is the amount of time I am now behind a screen reading or typing emails. I miss the ability to head out onto site when I need to clear my head and do some thinking, so it’s essential to know when to take some time out and just refresh. There is a great sense of freedom here when managing our time, allowing us to take advantage of being located in the city centre and just going out for a walk at lunchtime is a great way to recharge.
My routine has changed significantly since being out on site, where I used to leave for work as early as 6am and be home again by 6pm! That didn’t lend itself well to being involved with the family at all during the week, so now, I get to do the school run every morning and some of the later pick ups. That is a massive change for me, giving me a better feeling of being involved with my family and supporting my wife. That makes a huge difference to my life and I’m able to get my work done while still feeling engaged in home life!
My only other comment is that we always call it ‘work-life’ balance – and I am now on a single handed crusade to change that to ‘life-work’ balance, because although work is important and I am committed to my career, you need to keep it in mind that life should come first!
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