Steve O’Brien - Operations & Supply Chain Director

Steve joined the Saint-Gobain Group in 1995, working across a number of businesses and roles. In April 2022, he became Operations & Supply Chain Director in the Saint-Gobain Contracts Division, joining the executive leadership team, where he continues his work today under the STARK Group.

Responsible for the operational performance of the 49-branch network (across Jewson Civils Frazer and Minster), with a turnover in excess of £300m, Steve leads an expert team of colleagues equally committed to the optimisation of the businesses operational, logistics, health & safety and sustainability performance.

With direct responsibility for the performance of the large-scale logistics and fleet function, stock management and the company’s building and warehouse portfolio, Steve’s expertise throughout his career puts him in a strong position in his new role.

Steve tells us more about his ambition to nurture a culture in the business where people are keen to learn new skills, and are ready to embrace change and opportunity.

“I’ve been tremendously lucky throughout my career to work with really talented people, either as colleagues or customers. And today, I have the opportunity to bring the best of those experiences to my role and as a consequence implement best practices throughout every operational and supply chain function within the business.

“The real excitement for me now is the size of the impact we can have on making the world a more sustainable place for us all. Every customer we engage with has the capacity to shape the future – from delivering safe drinking water to building the nation’s new infrastructure, to building new homes and commercial buildings – as two complementary businesses we have the capability to touch every single project in that complex mix, from a civils and infrastructure perspective right through to interior fit-out.

“More importantly our role isn’t just about the supply of products, it’s about influencing how these products are developed, how they are brought to market and how we achieve greater sustainability throughout the supply chain. The difference in this business is that our culture of openness and honesty, both with colleagues, customers and suppliers, perfectly lends itself to the development of our sustainability roadmap that will deliver actual, measurable results.

“From a personal stance, this role is constantly evolving. I have a great opportunity to continue learning from the people around me - colleagues, customers and suppliers - taking that knowledge and applying it to make a difference, making it safer, better and faster than it was yesterday.”

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