How do they do it? Owen Jones
Owen Jones' passion for the built environment started in school and was given further impetus when his geography teacher suggested reading An introduction to Town and Country Planning Techniques, “which I still have on my bookshelf”. He followed his degree at Coventry University with a distance-learning MSc at Nottingham Trent. A year-out placement on his planning course was spent at Colwyn Borough Council. On completion of his course he spent three years at the House Builders Federation. In 2001 he joined Boyer and in 14 years has risen to the post of executive director.
What are your objectives in your current role and how are you measured against them?
As an executive director I am responsible firstly for the planning work the company undertakes, secondly the company’s financial performance, and thirdly the personal development and livelihood of our staff. The company operates an appraisal system based on professional and business objectives.
What key lessons have you learned during your career that help you to fulfil these objectives?
A. Take time to prepare. This is often time consuming and difficult but is very rewarding and will pay dividends.
Measure success by the achievements of the team. As I look to the second half of my career my interest in planning hasn’t waned, but my enthusiasm for seeing people I work with develop has grown.
Never stop learning. Very few days pass where I don’t find myself challenged and tested and quite often I find myself wishing I’d learnt things quite a bit earlier in my career.
