Helen Whitfield (pictured) has been shortlisted for Outstanding Business Leader of the Year in the Glass Slipper Awards 2018, which aim to recognise the brilliant achievements of women across the North East in business and the community.
Helen was nominated by her colleagues at NBS due to her exceptional achievements as a great leader. She’s been key to NBS’ success; staff numbers boosted from 20 to 200, turnover exceeding £23m, customers around the world and a business recognised globally for leading digital innovation in the built environment.
And even more satisfying for Helen, this success has resulted in creating exceptional opportunities and careers for many based in the North East.
As well as driving high levels of business growth, Helen has a track record for bringing the best out of people and sees the success of the business as being linked to investment in her colleagues.
Through her passion for people, she has been a part of developing a number of colleagues through the business, who now take up some of the more senior roles at NBS. For those who come with passion and commitment, Helen believes with the right level of support and development there is no end to what can be achieved.
Over the last 24 months, Helen has taken this passion for people to another level and has been an active lead in creating opportunities to inspire the next generation, with a particular focus on non-traditional routes into the industry. With further global growth planned for NBS, Helen wants to see this opportunity shared with others, and for fantastic careers to be available to many.
Helen is simply a fantastic example of what it means to be a business leader. She’s informed, passionate, innovative and widely respected within our business, as well as within the wider North East region and global construction industry.
Lindi Teate,
Director of Corporate Services, NBSHelen said: “I’m honoured to be shortlisted for this prestigious award, and take it as real team recognition. Even though I joined a very male dominated industry, the fact that I was female was neither important nor a hindrance. I’m very grateful to everyone at NBS for their continued support and recognition.”
Helen left accountancy private practice to join NBS in 1988 which was then a fledging business. She was originally appointed to lead the finance function in the business and subsequently led the consolidation of three geographically distant finance teams into a single Newcastle based team. Now as Chief Operating Officer, she is responsible for all aspects of customer growth, their needs and aspirations including understanding new markets. Helen has also been integral to the recent global expansion of NBS, acquiring a company in Canada and setting up a subsidiary in Australia, with more global expansion in the pipeline for this growing business.
Helen is a qualified Accountant, holds the Institute of Directors Diploma in Company Direction, a scholarship to the Kellogg School of Management in Chicago and in February 2008 was the first female director and executive board member.
Lindi Teate, Director of Corporate Services at NBS, said: “Helen is simply a fantastic example of what it means to be a business leader. She’s informed, passionate, innovative and widely respected within our business, as well as within the wider North East region and global construction industry. Helen was one of the reasons I joined NBS; it’s great to have the opportunity to work so closely with a leader who continually strives to make herself, our business and all who she works with, be the best they can be, and delivering optimally at all times. I’m thrilled she’s being recognised in this way.”
The winners of the Glass Slipper Awards will be announced in February 2018.
For more information, please contact NBS PR Executive Jennifer Scullion on 0191 244 5523 or email Jennifer.Scullion@theNBS.com.
ABOUT NBS: NBS is committed to offering distinctive, innovative specification and information solutions to construction industry professionals and are proud to be leading the construction industry in its digital evolution. Our origins lie in the National Building Specification and for over 40 years we have developed and produced NBS products which support the built environment. Our NBS specification products cover construction, engineering services and landscape design. More recently we have developed an integrated Building Information Modelling (BIM) platform that has been designed to support global design and construction. It currently has four major components:
• NBS BIM Toolkit. BIM execution plan, roles and responsibilities.
• NBS Create. BIM specification and knowledge platform.
• NBS National BIM Library. BIM object library, generic and actual.
• Construction Information Service (CIS). Standards and regulations.
CIS is delivered via a joint venture with IHS Markit. This relationship has successfully prospered for many years.
Our products are recognised as being individually effective in their own right, but via the linking of the data, classification and integration, the true power comes through these connections across the NBS BIM platform. Combining world leading technology with expert knowledge, NBS is trusted to help construction industry professionals make the best project decisions.
