Business Operations Coordinator

No More Digging Wales (NMD) installs ground screw foundations - the modern alternative to digging and concrete.

We build foundations, boardwalks, bridges and walkways for wildlife trusts, parks and councils, as well as working on solar farms, glamping sites and commercial projects across the UK.

We're a small, friendly and ambitious business. We've grown every year, we've just taken on some of our biggest projects yet, and our new warehouse and office space are being fitted out now.

Until now, the two directors have handled almost everything behind the scenes themselves - enquiries, quotes, scheduling, invoices, suppliers, tenders, paperwork and marketing, usually between site visits.

That needs to change.

So we're not simply looking for someone to answer the phone and do the admin.

We're looking for the third person in the room.

Someone who wants to understand how the whole business works, take ownership, bring ideas and help us build a bigger and better company.

THE OPPORTUNITY

This is a brand-new role working directly with the two directors.

You'll get visibility across almost every part of NMD - customers, projects, crews, suppliers, finances, tenders, marketing and the day-to-day operation of the company.

Initially, we'll need you to get on top of the things that currently sit with the directors.

But that's only the starting point.

Once you understand the business, we want you asking questions.

Why do we do it this way?

Could we organise this better?

Are enquiries being followed up properly?

Is there software that could save us time?

Is there a market we're not targeting?

Could we present ourselves better?

What are we missing?

If you see something that could be better, we want you to say so and, where appropriate, take ownership of improving it.

Because there are only three of us in the office, good ideas won't have to travel through five layers of management before anything happens.

You'll be sitting next to the people who can say "let's do it."

WHAT YOU'LL BE DOING

Run the office

You'll gradually take ownership of the day-to-day organisation behind our projects, including:

• Being the first voice on the phone and first reply to many incoming emails
• Raising invoices, purchase orders and supplier bills in Xero
• Keeping on top of outstanding payments
• Managing the jobs calendar, who is on which site and when
• Booking accommodation, plant hire and other project requirements
• Onboarding new crew members, including contracts, training records and kit
• Keeping insurance, accreditations and company paperwork organised and up to date

Help us win more work

Growth is everyone's business here.

You'll help make sure opportunities don't get missed by:

• Logging new enquiries and making sure quotes are followed up
• Keeping our customer and prospect information organised
• Monitoring tender portals including Sell2Wales and Contracts Finder
• Helping us pull together strong tender submissions
• Building our LinkedIn presence
• Connecting and building relationships with the people and organisations who specify and buy our work, landscape architects, ecologists, wildlife trusts, councils, solar developers and others

This isn't a cold-calling or commission sales role.

It's about making sure a good business does a better job of finding opportunities, building relationships and turning interest into work.

Tell our story

We do some brilliant projects.

Bridges over rivers. Boardwalks through nature reserves. Ground screw foundations for unusual buildings. Solar projects.

They photograph brilliantly.

At the moment, hardly anybody sees them.

We'd like you to change that.

You'll help capture what we're doing and build a consistent presence across LinkedIn and social media, showing potential customers what NMD can do.

WHERE THIS ROLE CAN GO

This is probably the most important part of the advert.

We're not recruiting someone to stay an administrator forever.

We're looking for someone who sees joining a growing small company at this stage as an opportunity.

At first, you'll be doing plenty of hands-on administration and learning how everything works.

The more value you bring to the business, the bigger we want your role to become.

Over time, the aim is for you to take increasing ownership of the office and business operations, introducing better systems, solving problems before they reach the directors and helping us build the infrastructure a bigger company needs.

As NMD grows, there may be people and functions underneath you that don't exist today.

The opportunity is to grow from helping run the business to becoming one of the people who runs it.

Nobody has done this job before, so there's no previous person's role for you to inherit.

You'll get to build it.

We're looking for someone who, five years from now, would like to look around a much bigger NMD and be able to say:

"I helped build this."

THE PERSON WE'RE LOOKING FOR

We're looking for someone who:

• Is highly organised and can keep on top of multiple things at once - previous admin or office experience is useful, but attitude, ability and potential matter more to us
• Can organise other people as well as themselves
• Takes ownership rather than waiting to be told every next step
• Notices when something isn't working and wants to improve it
• Is curious about how a business works
• Is comfortable suggesting an idea and then helping make it happen
• Communicates confidently and warmly on the phone
• Writes clearly and professionally
• Can switch between an invoice, a customer enquiry, a crew problem and a LinkedIn post without losing track of things
• Wants responsibility and is excited by the opportunity to take on more as they grow
• Is excited by the idea of joining a small company where their contribution will be visible

Experience with Xero or similar accounting software would be useful, but we can teach the right person.

Construction or trades experience is a bonus, not a requirement. We certainly don't expect you to arrive knowing everything about ground screws.

We'll teach you.

THIS ROLE PROBABLY ISN'T FOR YOU IF....

There's nothing wrong with wanting a predictable job with a clearly defined list of responsibilities, but this probably isn't that job.

It won't suit you if you prefer to wait for someone to tell you what to do next, or if you'd rather stay within a tightly defined job description.

The right person will eventually know parts of this business better than the directors do.

That's exactly what we want.

WORKING ARRANGEMENTS

You'll initially work from home while our new offices are completed. We'll provide your laptop and phone.

Once the offices are ready, you'll work there alongside the directors at least three days a week.

A full UK driving licence and your own transport are essential, as public transport doesn't reach us.

Monday to Friday, 37.5 hours per week.

We're flexible about exact start and finish times.

WHAT YOU GET AT THE START

• £25,000–£27,000, depending on experience
• A role designed to increase in responsibility, title and salary as you grow into it
• A formal review after your first six months to discuss your progress and where the role goes next
• Direct access to the two people running the company
• Genuine influence over how a growing business operates
• 28 days' holiday including bank holidays
• Workplace pension
• Laptop and phone provided
• The opportunity to build a role rather than simply inherit one

And, if you're the person we're hoping to find, the chance to build a career alongside a company that's growing with you.

We'd also like to know a little more about the person behind the application

In a few sentences, tell us:

1. Tell us about a time you've made yourself genuinely valuable - at work, university, in a society, volunteering, a side project or anywhere else. What did you take ownership of, improve, solve or make happen?

2. If this goes really well, where would you like this role to have taken you in three to five years?

Don't have a good example for question 1 yet? That's absolutely fine. Tell us why you think this could be the opportunity where you prove what you're capable of.

We genuinely read these answers, and they'll be an important part of deciding who we invite to meet us

Pay: £25,000.00-£27,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Company events
• Company pension
• Free parking
• On-site parking
• Work from home

Application question(s):

• Do you have access to your own reliable transport for travelling to our office

Licence/Certification:

• Driving Licence (required)

Work Location: Hybrid remote in Barry CF63 3RF