People Series – Paul Jones

We talk to Paul Jones about his career at Deloitte and the changing landscape in capital projects.
 

Hi Paul, welcome to the People Series, tell us about your career within Deloitte and before joining.
 

I’m an Assistant Director and joined Deloitte 10 years ago after becoming chartered as an MRICS Quantity Surveyor. My route to the firm was slightly unusual and at the start of my career I worked in the music industry as an engineer and session musician for a number of commercial records. This initial work in the creative sector provided some great ‘hands-on’ project management experience, requiring technical solutions and strong people skills to bring together tracks for producers and artists. Following a move to New Zealand, and time spent travelling, I found that I was able to transfer these client management skills into the real estate sector, which led to completion of the RICS QS pathway at a surveying company and finally a role at Deloitte Real Assets Advisory.

Within the firm, I now specialise in capital projects strategy, assurance and procurement in the infrastructure, transport and government / public sectors. There have been several highlights in recent years including working on exciting major programmes within the UK as a subject matter expert and travelling overseas to lead teams for assignments in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
 

In recent years, you must have seen a lot of change in the industry. What are the current trends your clients are experiencing?
 

Through my role here, I've seen firsthand how much the capital projects landscape has changed. These days, our clients are grappling with the need to adapt their approaches to deal with the new challenges. We’ve seen organisations exploring alternative delivery models to accelerate their capital programmes and clients working to reset their supply chain relationships to rebalance risk and increase resilience. Equally, there have been pressures across both public and private sectors to reshape real estate portfolios to support business transformation and reflect today’s ways of working. Our projects focus on some of the most complex, challenging and pressing industry issues and it is especially rewarding when working closely with clients to develop and deliver their capital project strategies and navigate market challenges.
 

Day-to-day how do you find working in the team?
 

Our Real Assets Advisory team is a diverse group, which brings together professionals from many different capital projects, real estate and related industry backgrounds. Many of our projects are delivered using a multi-disciplinary model and this encourages collaboration with wider business specialists and enables teams to be rapidly mobilised to respond to a specific client need. A great example of this was when we brought together real estate advisors, forensic specialists and risk experts to support a client investigation into the under-performance of a construction project and establish the root causes. No two days at Deloitte are ever the same and this creates a real energy in the team and promotes a culture of continued professional development.
 

What’s the best advice that you’ve been given?
 

When I started my career, I was advised that consultancy delivers most value when it involves a mutual ‘development journey’ with a client rather than a ‘transactional’ relationship. This advice resonated with me, and I always aim to leave a legacy with the organisations that I work with. This includes providing fresh perspectives, building client skills and capability, and empowering organisations to drive their own sustainable future. I remain a firm believer that it is important to approach projects with a clear sense of purpose when planning for success.

To learn more about our people and what a career at Deloitte is like watch our video or check out the latest episode of the Futureproofed podcast. If you would like to explore our open roles, please check out the current Real Estate opportunities.