A Dorset businessman is celebrating after being shortlisted for two prestigious awards just a year after taking on the managing director’s role.
Paul Fox, 42, is in line to win the Institute of Directors’ Director of the Year for a small or medium-sized business, and also the Corporate Responsibility award, both in the South West region.
Mr Fox, from Ferndown, Dorset, heads Merryhill Envirotec, the Romsey-based asbestos removal company.
He was shortlisted for both awards and the winners will be announced at the IoD ‘Entrepreneurs’ Dinner’ on June 6 in Bristol. The victors will then go through to a national final.
Despite difficult economic conditions in the construction sector Mr Fox oversaw a rise in net profit before tax of an astonishing 79 per cent compared with the year before he took the reins.
And sales shot up by 7.5 per cent, which enabled the firm to take on more staff and traineeships.
Mr Fox also gained the rare Chartered Director status, the first ever person in his industry to do so.
The company is involved in dangerous work, which is one of the reasons why Mr Fox was so pleased to be shortlisted for the Corporate Responsibility award.
Merryhill is at the forefront of many ethical and sustainability initiatives and secured funding to look at ‘sustainability best practice’, the results of which it shares with other firms.
The company has also implemented a more flexible working environment with two members of staff able to work from home, saving 12,000 miles of travel each year and reducing Merryhill’s carbon footprint.
It has joined the Supply Chain Sustainability School, a virtual learning environment set up some major UK companies to help construction sub-contractors further develop their sustainability competencies.
Mr Fox, who also gives his time free to Dormen – a business mentoring scheme in Dorset – said: “It is a great honour to be short-listed for these awards.
“It reflects well on everybody at Merryhill who have worked incredibly hard during tough economic times.
“We are determined as a company to act in a responsible way at all times, with regard to our staff, the environment and society as a whole.
“We have joined numerous schemes to help us achieve this and to have our efforts recognised through me being short-listed is very pleasing.”
