Organisation, overheads and costs.

One of our staff with a client at Balfour Beatty’s Florida East Coast Railroad.

Collinson Grant has supported different operating companies on diverse local and international projects.

Balfour Beatty serves international markets, specialising in construction, civil engineering and infrastructure, and transport and power systems. It manages complex projects that demand advanced technical skills and the highest standards of service and reliability.

Collinson Grant has been working regularly with Balfour Beatty since 1996. The company’s organisational structure depends on delegating authority to local managers for achieving agreed targets. In our work in the various operating companies, and at a corporate level, we have been careful to reinforce this culture, while investigating the possibilities for exploiting synergies and sharing resources.

A number of consultants have worked on assignments in Europe and the United States largely devoted to examining overheads, organisational structures and the options for reducing costs. This prolonged campaign has helped to strengthen the understanding and control of costs throughout the business, balancing the devolved culture with common understanding of best practice.

We have also supported the reorganisation of the USA regional centre, helped to integrate two American acquisitions, and improved managerial controls, information systems and processes in other operating companies. More recently we have worked with senior managers:

• to advise various operating companies on all aspects of managing human resources
• to implement the Group’s Stakeholder Codes of Practice throughout 21 worldwide businesses
• to reduce indirect costs in Balfour Beatty Rail
• to improve the organisational structure of rail maintenance services.

Despite turbulent markets and changing economic circumstances, Balfour Beatty has achieved strong performance by promulgating core managerial values while empowering its employees to respond quickly to customers’ changing needs. Its particular success derives from the way it has been able to do this throughout its worldwide operations.