“Some days I feel like I’m living in a parallel universe. Why is everyone wearing face masks? Why am I carrying a bottle of hand sanitiser around with me? And why can’t I go out for a drink? The past 12 months have turned our lives upside down – but I’m a practical person. What’s happened has happened. It hasn’t been nice, for any of us, and unfortunately continues to be so, but some good things did happen in 2020 and my focus now, and that of Matrix Networks Group, is to look forward to the next 12 months and beyond.
“Overall, we’ve weathered the storm reasonably well as a business. Our growth rate has slowed a little, but our prospects have remained strong. Our offices are open, albeit with managed, reduced occupancy to ensure a Covid-safe environment, but we’re working well, both on and offline. Apart from a short period in the Spring, construction has continued, which means the requirement for utility infrastructure has remained. The key thing for us now, is where do we go from here?
“2021 will be another year of change for the Group – but positive this time. We were founded on the principals of offering something different in the market – delivering on what our customers want, tailoring solutions to suit them and putting our employees in the driving seat. This has proved to be a successful approach, so much so that 85% of our work is generated through repeat business, or customer referrals. We now want to build on that – growing our business further and spreading our net wider in terms of the industry sectors we’re looking to engage with.
“January will see the start of a significant recruitment drive for the business. Working with our employment partner, we’ll be looking for people with a range of skill sets to boost every aspect of our business across sales, design, operations and commercial. We need these people and many more to follow if we’re to achieve the targets we’ve set ourselves for the next five years.
“We’ll also be closely analysing how we can adapt our delivery model to support emerging market opportunities such as data centres, smart cities and the Government’s 10 Point Plan for a ‘Green Industrial Revolution’. 2020 has forced a rapid change to our lifestyle behaviours – our use of IT in particular. It’s suggested that, as a nation, we’ve fast forwarded possibly five years to increased levels of remote working, virtual office environments and a heavier adoption of online shopping. This changes the landscape for industrial and commercial developments, where investors are choosing focus their interest and how we can we offer a utility infrastructure solution which is relevant for the future.
“Christmas is just around the corner, so in the spirit of looking forward, I plan to enjoy that with my family and along with the rest of nation (world?) take a breath for a day or two, then head into 2021 and make the most of the opportunities it has to offer.”
Rob Sparkes, CEO, Matrix Group