Big Interview
Breaking down barriers to success Carol Massay has spent much of her 30-year career changing perceptions. As a woman working in a traditionally male-dominated construction industry, she has had to fight harder than her male counterparts to be recognised and respected to achieve her aspirations. But recognised and respected she is, having worked her way up the career ladder and transformed a construction software specialist into a thriving, award-winning company. Since Carol took over the reins at Borehamwood-based EasyBuild UK, the company has doubled staff numbers, increased revenues and become a much slicker, more efficient operation. New systems have been put in place, marketing campaigns have attracted new customers, and people with the right skills have been recruited into key positions. Carol has built up a strong reputation in the industry as a construction software leader who “listens and cares about her client’s technology needs”. She also spends time speaking with other industry leaders to ensure that she is kept informed on the challenges faced managing a construction company and projects. With this information, she ensures that the range of EasyBuild solutions are kept up to date. This year, seven new well-known UK contractors came on board before the coronavirus hit UK shores, and although there was an understandable lull in business during March and April, activity has picked up once again. The plan now is to grow the company’s presence across London and the South East – particularly in the borough of Southwark and surrounding areas – as well as further field in the North of England and Scotland. It’s an ambitious target in what undoubtedly will be a volatile post-COVID, post-Brexit trading environment, but taking on tough challenges seems to be in Carol’s DNA. She says: “As a woman, I enjoyed the challenge of trying to make my way in the construction software industry. I have always remained focused on the job and challenge in hand, and never get distracted on the negative comments, or people’s opinions on me. Even when I took on the job at EasyBuild, I read one or two negative comments on social media basically suggesting that I might fail. All that did was to make me more determined to succeed.”
8 Southwark BUSINESS TODAY
She has done just that. EasyBuild is now one of the most recognised providers of ERP (enterprise resource planning) software to the construction industry. The three year award-winning software addresses all the operational needs of a modern construction business, covering finance, commercial, project management and compliance. It is customisable with easy-to-use applications providing all trades within the industry – including main contractors, civil engineers, demolition, interior fit-out, roofing and cladding, joinery, rail and utilities – with the tools needed to manage projects in a timely and efficient manner. Carol says: “Previously, it was mainly the larger construction firms that had adopted the software, whereas smaller players tended to stick with tried and trusted methods. This is now changing; more SMEs are realising the value that this type of software can bring to their business. It helps the industry to identify and manage risk on construction projects and track spend against the whole lifecycle of the project on a day-to-day basis.” Carol and her team are currently transitioning many of EasyBuild’s existing and new clients to a cloud offering. The company’s cloud software gives clients access to business-critical applications at any time from any location and reduces the cost of servers and day-to-day IT management. Carol says: “Time and efficiency are important factors when trying to manage the day-to-day running of a business and knowing you have a secure dedicated platform for hosting your ERP construction software is a vital component. EasyBuild Cloud provides access to our applications for each customer using secured logins. This service is inclusive of the day-to-day management of the hosted environment, as well as daily backups, security updates, operating system upgrades and patch releases. “Moving to the cloud could therefore also help companies to save money by reducing IT costs. The cloud can help eliminate the need for costly hardware, upgrade and maintenance costs but also gives the benefit of easily scaling up a business as it expands and grows.”
Businesses of all sizes can now benefit from using EasyBuild’s Cloud platform, which ensures compliance and management of all projects simultaneously on any device and in real time. One of the core applications is the widespread use of mobile technology, providing everyone on site with familiar and powerful technology and information. EasyBuild Mobile allows operatives to use their smart phone remotely to record essential information and upload it back to head office immediately. This application enables the capture of labour cost via a timesheet app, requesting material and plant deliveries via the requisition app and recording the delivery of materials via the goods received app. Data is automatically synced back into EasyBuild’s ERP solution, which in turn saves time, removes paper and increases efficiency. It is undoubtedly a busy time for Carol, who has enjoyed a 30-year career in the industry. During that time, she has gleaned a wealth of experience building strong relationships with customers, understanding their needs and unearthing opportunities to upsell to clients. In 2015, the opportunity to apply for the CEO position at EasyBuild arose and she took it with both hands. She says: “The role of CEO was new for me; however, having worked for a larger software house previously, I understood construction software delivery and the art of managing people. I thought, I can do this.” Five years on, she’s glad she did. She’s keen to encourage other aspiring females into the industry and has set a goal of touring schools and colleges to talk to girls about the benefits of a career in construction. “If I can share my journey to help bring more young women into the sector, then this is my ultimate goal,” she says with conviction. “It’s great to see companies offering opportunities to young women through apprenticeships and work placements. The industry would benefit from more diversity and I think that companies are starting to recognise this.”
