James Dand

Chief Operating Officer

Our clients are at the centre of our business and our global success is driven by a commitment to excellence in everything we do.

I am responsible for delivering operational improvements across all aspects of Turner & Townsend's business and driving performance across all the company's sectors, services and markets.

As part of the global leadership team, I take a particular interest in the development of Turner & Townsend's proposition, its digital transformation and the management of its operational risk.

Career highlights

Appointed Chief Operating Officer, and to the Executive Board
2017
Appointed to Management Board
2016
Appointed Regional Managing Director Europe, and to Operations Board
2013
Appointed Country Manager, the Netherlands
2011
Moved with Turner & Townsend to Amsterdam
2006
Joined Turner & Townsend as a UK graduate
2002

Q. How has your career at Turner & Townsend developed?

A. I joined the firm as a graduate Cost Manager in London in 2002, working on HSE projects for clients including the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge. In 2004 I moved to Leeds to gain experience with our infrastructure team. In 2006 I moved again, this time to Amsterdam where I led teams on a number of regional roll out programmes and gained valuable international experience.

I was appointed Netherlands Country Manager in 2011 and Europe Regional Managing Director in 2013, running businesses at all stages of maturity. I was appointed Chief Operating Officer in 2017 and now I'm back where it all started, in London.

Q. Which project are you most proud of being involved in at Turner & Townsend?

A. I'm particularly proud of our 37-year partnership with Nissan, delivering a truly integrated service across 9,000 dealerships in 160 countries, drawing on the skills of 75 colleagues and a third of our global offices. It is a story that epitomises our firm.

Q. How do you see the business developing over the next five years?

A. I think the change over the next five-year cycle will be greater than any change our industry has seen before. Client needs, growth markets, industry standards, people's motivations, working practices – they will all be very different. Our business will need to adapt on all of these fronts to remain relevant to our clients, remain the stand-out firm that people want to work for, and to do business in the right way.