Linda Strachan believes having a piece of the pie keeps employees sweet.
The finance director of Optimus played a significant role in the company’s latest efforts to make employees shareholders.
Optimus first allowed its workforce to buy shares in the company in the spring of 2010. Half of its then 40-strong workforce took up the offer. Today, the business has 130 workers and 56 shareholders, of which nine are members of the management team.
The firm recently made 500,000 shares available to its workforce based in Aberdeen and Inverness representing a 5% stake in the firm. A further v20 employees decided to get involved, including project engineer, Alison Gallagher.
“All the shares were taken up which is great,” says Ms Strachan.
“It is it not just my view but also the view of the founders that they always wanted employees involved in the business. It’s been proven that where people are engaged and involved in the business they are more likely to keep the work going and work harder.”
Ms Strachan joined the engineering firm in 2012, part of a cohort of four directors including Peter Stock, Gordon Lamont and Alan Smith.
She had been working with Optimus in her role at Aberdeen accountancy firm Anderson Anderson & Brown and went “in-house” to steer the growing firm’s financials.
“They didn’t then have an in-house finance expert up until then. They were expanding the business,” she explains.
“When you are growing there’s lots of extra things you need to think about during the growth process.
“I knew the business really well. It was a natural move across for me.”
Born in Fraserburgh, Ms Strachan discovered she was good at maths and accountancy at school which led her to pursue business studies at RGU and then taking accountancy exams.
“I never thought of doing anything else,” she soft spoken Ms Strachan admits.
Her skills have also given her the flexibility to combine family with work.
“I made sure that the skills I had were needed, whether I worked full time or part-time.”
She says the oil and gas consultancty is still persuing its growth plans – both in spite of and because of the downturn. The firm focuses on the principle of working “smarter and cheaper”, which is much in vogue at the moment.
She noted that the firm is currently considering its succession plan –
“At the moment the founding shareholders are looking to retire. That is something we will look at in the near future – how we buy them out,” she says.
Optimus was founded in December 1999 by Ian Bell as a process consultancy employing a handful of engineers.
It has since developed a variety of capabilities in fields including structural engineering, safety, strategic project planning and decommissioning.
In addition to Aberdeen headquarters at Rubislaw Den North, Optimus has bases in Inverness; Bangkok and Bulgaria.
Q&A
Who helped you get where you are today?
Having spent the biggest part of my working life within an expanding accountancy practice, A2+B, opportunities naturally opened up for me; I wanted to grow personally and help expand the business whilst maintaining the key principles that attracted both staff and clients – excellent service and good relationships.
My move to my former client, Optimus, was a natural transition into industry given that directors Ian Bell and Alasdair Reid were well known to me. I knew that their key business principles married up with mine and that I had the necessary skills to help them expand their business.
What do you still hope to achieve in business?
Continuing to learn and extend my working knowledge of the oil and gas industry and use this knowledge to help Optimus to grow and prosper.
If you were in power in government, what would you change?
Increase budgets to bolster the level of care for and education of our children: they are our future.
What are you reading, listening or glued to on TV?
Reading Ian Rankin and watching CSI.
What do you drive and dream of driving?
A Volkswagen Golf and I’m happy with that – fancy cars do nothing for me. I’d rather spend my money on great family holidays.
What would your children or partner say about you?
I’m always busy organising or, as they would say, bossing them around. They would also say that I work hard, but am always at home when they need me to be.
Which charity do you support and why?
Cancer Research given that cancer has affected so many people I know of all ages.