Meet the team: SHES Manager Phil Thomas

In this month’s edition of ‘Meet the team’, we’re introducing you to our SHES Manager Phil Thomas.

As our SHES Manager, Phil manages the team that’s responsible for our health and safety performance. Together, they make sure we’re keeping our customers and colleagues safe and well.

Can you tell us a bit more about your role, Phil?

I’m the SHES Manager at mua. SHES stands for Safety, Health, Environment and Sustainability. I oversee a small team who are responsible for the health and safety of all mua employees. We also keep our customers and communities safe by ensuring that the utility networks we adopt are fit for purpose and maintained in accordance with safety requirements.

What’s a typical working day like for you?

An average day for me can involve scheduling site safety visits, carrying out site inspections, collating data on SHESQ-related issues to determine areas for continuous improvement, overseeing our company audit programme, helping ensure we’re compliant with our statutory undertakings and supporting our construction partners – although not all at once!

The flexibility of working for mua allows for a mix of working from the office, site and home, which ensures I achieve a good work-life balance.

What do you like most about your role?

You can’t beat the sense of purpose – to make sure that everyone gets home safely and that our customers receive their energy and water safely and reliably.

I’ve been with mua since July 2019, which makes me the third longest-serving member of the team. It has been very satisfying to watch mua grow from those early years with just a handful of staff to now over 40.

I particularly like the fact that mua has managed to retain the friendly and supportive feel of a small company as it has grown. We all learn together and support each other as we grow. There’s a lot of variety in my role and I like that there’s always the challenge of learning something new.

What’s your proudest professional achievement?

It’s got to be achieving ISO 9001 certification for mua – although this is only the start! This certification is a globally recognised standard for quality management. Achieving the standard means we’ve got an effective quality management system that captures the policies, processes and procedures to meet customer and regulatory needs.

The ISO certification is a way for us to look outside the company and ensure we’re continually improving our health and safety practices. After all, health and safety cuts across any one particular employer. It’s good to work collaboratively and share learning so we can all play our part in improving standards for everyone. That’s something I’m proud of at mua.

How has your career so far led you to mua?

I’m not sure that it was obvious from my early years that I would find my calling in health and safety.

My very first job was as a petrol station attendant. It was a weekend job while I was still at school aged 16. And, yes, you did used to have attendants to operate the pumps for you and take payment!

Before then, I once played the lead in ‘Peter and the Wolf’ at the school production. Unfortunately, my acting career was short-lived as I fell off the stage!

What advice would you give to someone starting out on their career now?

Don’t be afraid to ask questions. People are always more willing to help than you might think.

What are your future aspirations?

Professionally, I am looking forward to growing the SHES team at mua. Personally, I should probably start planning what I want to do in retirement!

Talking about life outside of work, how do you like to spend your time?

When at home, I like to keep on top of my garden. Although small, it keeps me busy.

I also like to support my local RSPCA. Local branches are different from the national body and have to raise their own funding, so I help out when I can with fundraising and events.

I like to keep in touch with many friends who have moved away over the years, so I’m often travelling and meeting up with them socially. More often with those who live near enough to get the train, so we can have a few beers. Here I am with some friends having successfully completed an escape room!