Have you got what it takes to be group chief executive?
Steve Hindley risked the roof over his family's head so he could run his own company.

After 22 years with E Thomas, a subsidiary of Mowlem in the South West, he had a nice pension and could look forward to at least another decade in a secure and well-paid position. But he wanted his own company. He wanted to run an entire group according to the principles he had come to believe in.

So in 1998 he borrowed the money for a management buy-in at Midas, using his house as security. His two daughters, then in their teens, had to sign forms promising to leave the house without a fight if he went bankrupt.

"To put everything on the line does tend to concentrate the mind a bit," he says.

Not that Hindley could be called feckless. He'd known the founder of Midas, Len Lewis, for a number of years. According to Hindley, Lewis wanted to reduce his involvement in the company and the two started talking about Hindley taking over the reins. He was 49, and the time was ripe for the biggest career jump he was likely ever to make: taking responsibility (and liability) for the success or failure of a construction company.

"The perceived window of opportunity is quite narrow," he says. "Much below 45 you're considered to lack experience. Much beyond 50 and you're over the hill."

Lewis stuck around as a minority shareholder to ensure continuity. "That way we didn't have everybody walking out the door five minutes after we arrived," Hindley says.

Then the really hard work began. He had to get to know the business, define his ideas and enthuse his managers. At E Thomas he'd worked with big retailers under framework agreements. He wanted Midas to work this way too, and raise negotiated projects to 70% of all work, a target Midas has hit.

putting everything on the line tends to focus Your mind

Stephen Hindley, Midas Chief Executive

Hindley's arrival had an explosive effect on Midas. Four years ago the company was a regional contractor with a turnover of £30m. Now it turns over £115m and builds all over the country. Profits have grown even faster.

He's got the Midas touch, but says there is nothing magic about it. It's the natural outcome of his principles: a preference for partnering (with the customer focus and continuous improvement that go along with it) and an approach to staff that rewards independence and initiative.

Midas's Welsh operation, now employing 30 people and turning over £25m, was started by "a couple of Bristol guys" who did well on one job and knew they could do more.

"We'll grow the business at the same rate as we have people with career aspirations," Hindley says. "If somebody thinks they can open an office in wherever because they've go the contacts and the know-how, I'll say fine."

If you fancy doing a Hindley, you'll need management experience and the borrowing capacity. But you'll also need intangibles like the confidence to conceive and execute the idea, the contacts, the ability to inspire others and the nous to steer the corporate ship.

Hindley says it's hard to find that kind of management excellence in construction, and he has always taken his bearings from outside, involving himself in the Confederation of British Industry and reading a lot.

Curriculum Vitae

  • BSc (Hons), Salford University
  • 1976 joined E Thomas as project manager, made contracts manager 1982, appointed to the board 1987, became managing director 1989
  • 1998 appointed chief executive of Midas Group after leading management buy-in