I was managing Director of Marley Plumbing and Drainage for 9 years up to my retirement in December 2010. Marley Is part of Aliaxis sa, a 2 billion euro worldwide manufacturer of plastic pipes and fittings based in Belgium.
In 20083 Aliaxis announced its intention to restructure operations in the UK by forming one combined manufacturing operation (DHM Plastics) and 3 trading companies from what had been up until that time, 3 stand-alone businesses. Marley was one of these businesses and as clearly Aliaxis would no longer need 3 Financial Directors in the ‘new world’, Les Thomas was taken on for a fixed contract to cover a vacancy after the resignation of the previous incumbent.
When I interviewed Les for the post, I knew from that moment that he was ideally suited to the job and I was not disappointed. He took over at a very difficult time and was faced with the annual audit a matter of weeks after joining with only a month of overlap between him and his predecessor. The IT systems at Marley were very poor and this made it very difficult for any newcomer to grasp the situation. Les put in tremendous energy though and got us through the audit, and within a short space of time had the monthly accounts under control.
Les is passionate about waste and opportunities for improving the bottom line and was quick to highlight this to good effect. He also put much more focus on cash management which again produced tangible results, with the cash balance at the 2009 year-end some £6.2m better than the previous year.
On top of all this, Les made a big contribution to the project to consolidate the manufacturing operations, and simultaneously introduce ‘Dynamics’, a new ERP system. He coped admirably with everything that was thrown at him.
Not surprisingly from the above, I would not hesitate to recommend Les for similar positions in the future. He has great energy, a challenging style and is a good team player. Please feel free to contact me If you would like any more information.
Christopher Nunn Managing Director, Marley Plumbing & Drainage
