In the hot seat

"You had better loosen your collar," suggests new WS Atkins chief executive Robin Southwell. It is a stiflingly hot day in central London, and the office air-conditioning has just packed in. "I've got to speak to our landlords about this," Southwell says as we enter a rather tatty room for the interview. "What about a glass of cold water," he insists, then scurries out to fetch one.

Three months into the job, north Londoner Southwell is still in his honeymoon period. "It's a very, very exciting period in my life," he coos. "There aren't enough hours in the day to do justice to what I want to do. That's not helped by the fact that I am enjoying what I do immensely. Time is my most precious asset." His time is divided between work and family – he is married with two children.

If Southwell is daunted by the challenge of taking over and reshaping one of the largest construction consultants in the world, he gives no sign of it. He is relaxed and phlegmatic throughout our talk. Perhaps he is reassured by the fact that turnover has almost trebled in the past five years, from £236m in 1996 to £674m in 2000/01. Or, possibly, he is confident that his plans to restructure Atkins, due to be announced today, will make it "the world's first-choice supplier for technical services and integrated solutions for the built environment".

Southwell was more than chuffed when he received the job offer last year, while in his post at defence supplier BAe Systems. "It was the attractiveness of running this company that was so compelling," he remembers. "I thought I was ready and able to run a very good company."

The job offer came at an opportune time. "I had just gone though the deep despair of celebrating my 40th birthday," Southwell comments wryly. "I was in the position to start thinking about what I wanted to achieve, what I wanted to do. Going through your 40th makes you sit back and think about where you are going."

The birthday must have come as something of a shock to Southwell. This is the man the Australia Financial Review dubbed a "38-year-old teenager" while he was running British Aerospace Australia in the late 1990s. He was also renowned for his jet-skiing. Southwell laughs at this mention. "I can't get away from that," he complains. "I am plagued by my jet-skiing."

Southwell is not convinced by the teenager reference but admits that there is a certain youthfulness in his approach to business. "I would like to feel I am quite informal in approach. Humour is a very important language of communication in business. People work a hell of a lot better if they enjoy what they are doing. If you match that with intensity and drive, hopefully you've got a good mix."

To begin with, Southwell is great on broad-brush plans but a bit short on detail. But then he reveals that he does, indeed, have a clear plan for restructuring the business

Southwell thinks coming to Atkins as an outsider gives him an advantage. "There are a lot of engineers in the company. I'm not an engineer, but the fact that I'm not from Atkins was a major factor in what the board wished to accomplish. They are bringing in a fresh perspective. There is no baggage implicit or explicit. I can try to look at the company in as clear and transparent a way as possible."

To begin with, Southwell is great on broad-brush plans for the business but a bit short on detail. Instead, he trots off some catchy business epithets, which more often than not include the words "strategic context". He wants to instil a new high-performance culture among the workforce and for the company to move from a "top down" to a "bottom up" culture.

"Those that are doing well are rewarded; those who are not should be supported," as he puts it. What it seems to boil down to is that he is keen to whet Atkins' competitive edge, and to reimpose control, which may have slipped during its recent surge in growth.

But then Southwell reveals that he does, indeed, have a clear plan for restructuring the business – to be outlined today and tomorrow at a strategic conference for 120 Atkins managers. This will see the business move away from an organisation based on what it does – quantity surveying, engineering, financing and so on – to one based around particular markets, such as education, road and rail. Individual firms specialising in these markets will be created beneath the Atkins umbrella.

He is also adding a strategic and commercial director to the group's table of organisation with the job of implementing the changes. Then there is the issue of the Atkins brand, which Southwell thinks needs "simplifying".

He warms to his theme. "Say there are 15 things we do very well in our markets; the professional compatibility needs to be channeled into market-led, customer-focused activities. The professionalism is a means to an end."

It’s important to understand the dynamic of this industry first rather than introduce a whole new set of assumptions. Construction is not slower than defence. If anything, the pace is quicker

Southwell is aware of a weakness that has grown with the company. Insiders point to the unwieldy nature of the group, in terms of the number of divisions, offices and the Atkins brand, which makes it hard for staff, let alone customers, to understand how the business operates. "I need to fully understand what the dynamics of this very interesting business are," he says. "We need to simplify matters so that we all understand what it stands for."

Some staff point to a university campus feel throughout the business, especially at its Epsom headquarters, which may undermine its business focus. Southwell concedes this. "I do realise it has that campus feel – I want to optimise it," he adds, pointing to his intention to add a more market-focused edge to the knowledge-bank at Atkins.

That's not to say that Southwell is disappointed with the Atkins staff. "The staff have great professional expertise and personal integrity. It's very impressive." Nor is he envisaging a slash-and-burn exercise. "It's not a wholescale restructuring or rationalisation," he insists. "The important thing to remember is that this is a successful company."

He wants to find a use for his defence experience, which was largely in marketing, strategy and sales, but is aware that there can be pitfalls in doing this. "It's important to understand the dynamic of this industry first rather than introduce a whole new set of assumptions." But one thing Southwell is all too aware of from his previous experience is delays. "Construction is not slower than defence. If anything, the pace of transaction is quicker in construction."

So quick is the pace that Southwell is already looking at two acquisition opportunities in America. He says he is looking at firms with a particular interest in transport technology, such as IT systems that support development of road and rail programmes. "We need to ensure companies have good management and are balanced businesses," he adds.