Hollis appoints new chief executive
Hollis has named Andy Hay as its new chief executive, as the firm sets its sights on its “next phase of growth”.
Hay will formally join the business in May and will spearhead its ambition to raise turnover to £100m in the next five years.
Most recently, Hay was managing director for EMEA property management at Colliers, where he was responsible for delivering its first pan-European property management service line as well as driving its European digitalisation and ESG offering.
Hollis has named Andy Hay as its new chief executive, as the firm sets its sights on its “next phase of growth”.
Hay will formally join the business in May and will spearhead its ambition to raise turnover to £100m in the next five years.
Most recently, Hay was managing director for EMEA property management at Colliers, where he was responsible for delivering its first pan-European property management service line as well as driving its European digitalisation and ESG offering.
Previous experience also includes roles at CBRE, where he held positions on the global asset services and EMEA operations boards.
Hay will take over from interim chief executive Digby Flower, who will become chairman of the business.
Flower is credited with playing a key role in setting the company on a renewed footing towards growth since his appointment in September last year. This has included setting up a new board structure with regional managing directors, as well as driving the recruitment process to secure a permanent successor.
Founder and outgoing chairman John Woodman will remain close to the business as its founding partner.
Hollis is also appointing four strategic directors to work alongside the board to “drive growth and innovation” across key service areas.
Benjamin Ralph and Deepika Singhal will join as directors in April to head up the building safety and fire offer and lead on building physics services in the UK, respectively. Alistair Cooper will become director and head of dilapidations in June. A new director will also join to establish and lead a new development management service from September this year.
Woodman said: “Over the years we have explored many ways of growing and pushing the business forward; my desire has always been to maintain our independence and put our people first.
“Switching to an employee-owned trust two and a half years ago was the first step of putting a succession plan in place that secured this independence. We already have a group of directors who are among the best in the industry at what they do; together with a new CEO and strategic directors who bring with them experience from outside of Hollis, they will be able to grow our business even further.”
Flower said: “Andy has a proven track record of delivering significant growth to already successful businesses with an international reach, while also leading strategic change within large corporate organisations in real estate and other industries.
“His strong digital and ESG focus and desire to be innovative fits well with the direction Hollis has been going and what has made Hollis the success it is today. He comes with a reputation for understanding the importance of developing the people within a business, which aligns with the Hollis ethos.”
Hay said: “Since becoming part of the real estate industry in 2006, I have always been aware of Hollis as a business that was constantly growing and being at the forefront of innovating and pushing the entire industry to evolve. It has always been admired and respected by competitors and clients alike for the way in which it has developed incredibly talented teams and individuals.”
