Board profile - Richard Davis

Richard Davis is assurance and performance director for Kier’s construction division. He joined Kier in 1988 as a site manager, moving on to client-facing roles and quality assurance before being appointed to the construction main board in 2015. 

Here, Richard was responsible for constructing the business strategy and measuring its performance against its key objectives. His recent outputs have included helping define the business service proposition across areas such as social value, modern methods of construction, digital and quality. 

In his current role, Richard is responsible for identifying and delivering a portfolio of opportunities for business improvement and increased efficiency that support Kier’s Performance Excellence framework, while providing governance through a measure to improve ethos.

Following the mantra of getting people to do ‘more of what they do well’, Richard identifies best practice and harnesses the skills, knowledge, and expertise of colleagues to deliver change and improvement throughout the business.

Richard and Kier have been involved in GIRI since the early days of the initiative, including the development of the leadership training course. “We recognised that we were developing a product and a brand that both employees and customers would come to associate with better outcomes for their projects.”

The board vacancy arose at the ideal time for Richard as he has been tasked with implementing GIRI principles as a formal initiative within Kier’s construction business this year, including several pilot projects within its infrastructure business.

“Timing is everything,” says Richard. “It was the right time for me to volunteer to take on a wider leadership role and help shape GIRI through the next stages of its development and drive the industry brand it has become.”