This month, we spoke to Ronald Nxumalo, Soft FM Service Manager at King's College London. Ronald discussed the work he does, the biggest challenges and his proudest moments during his 11 years with Bouygues Energies & Services. Ronald also told us about his experience as a committee member of Kaleidoscope, our employee-led race network.

Who are you and what do you do?

My name is Ronald Nxumalo and I am one of the four Soft FM Service Managers on the King’s College London (KCL) contract. I have been with Bouygues Energies & Services for almost 11 years.

What do you do in your day-to-day role and who do you work with?

As part of the Service Management team, our role is to ensure that our Domestics, Catering, Security, and Admin teams are delivering world-class services to the university, in line with the ‘Fit for Kings Programme’ as expected by the client. My current responsibilities involve the direct management of the Domestics’ teams and the delivery of domestic services to both of the KCL campuses.

What are the biggest challenges you face?

Certainly, the biggest challenge so far has been the COVID-19 pandemic. From the beginning of the pandemic, we were immediately classed as key workers as the client was conducting key research into the virus and working on possible vaccines. We were required to maintain our services to the buildings whilst adapting to the different challenges that COVID-19 presented. I couldn’t be prouder of our teams during this time. The team spirit and togetherness shown was ever more present throughout this time as everyone stepped up to make sure that we continued to provide services, while also ensuring that everyone was kept safe and that our buildings were COVID-19 secure to enable the client to carry out their essential work.

What are you most proud of in your time at Bouygues E&S Solutions?

I have had some really amazing moments in my career so far in Bouygues E&S as I have been able to work with some of the most wonderful and incredible colleagues. I do, however, have two stand out moments: the first was being part of an incredibly talented KCL management team back in 2010, where we successfully delivered a Kings Efficiency Programme (KEP) which was really instrumental in the contract in providing real value for money to the client.

The other moment, without a doubt, was being part of the incredible team who delivered the smooth and successful move from our old Head Office to Becket House, where we are currently located. Being part of the team involved with this move which set the foundations of what is now a wonderful office space, will always be an honour for me.

Tell us about your involvement with our internal race network, Kaleidoscope.

I’m one of the committee members within Kaleidoscope and my main role is Events Coordinator & Social Media Officer.

I like to say the phrase ‘be part of the change you want to see’. So, when the opportunity came about to be part of this exciting new committee, it was one I could not turn down. As we slowly continue to educate ourselves and have those conversations on equality, diversity, and race, I felt it important to be involved with that conversation within the company. I would encourage others to join and use the platform to help educate and inform each other. It is only through educating, understanding, and appreciating each other’s differences that we can start to come together as one.