Group Maintenance Manager

Group Maintenance Manager, Gateshead

Vertu Motors plc is one of the UK's largest motor retailers, generating annual revenues in excess of £5 billion across a network of 200 dealerships, supported by a property portfolio valued at over £300 million. We are now seeking a Group Maintenance Manager to join our expanding Property team.

The Vertu Motors Property Team manages our portfolio largely in-house, covering Real Estate, Property Development and Property Maintenance. Guided by our mission, "To deliver an outstanding customer motoring experience through honesty and trust", we are selective about who we welcome into our team. We are seeking an experienced maintenance professional who not only brings strong technical expertise and leadership capability but also demonstrates our core values of Passion, Respect, Integrity, Professionalism and Recognition.

About the Role

This is a senior, hands-on role within the Property Team, leading our Reactive Maintenance and Planned Preventative Maintenance functions. You will be responsible for ensuring our dealership buildings and facilities remain safe, compliant, operational and customer-ready. Combining technical expertise, commercial awareness and people leadership, you will play a key role in delivering a responsive, cost-effective maintenance service across our national property portfolio.

You will report into the senior Property leadership team.  Whilst the role is office-based, there may be occasional travel across the dealership network and participation in an out-of-hours on-call rota for urgent incidents and emergencies.

Key elements of the role are:

• Lead, support and develop the established Reactive Maintenance and Planned Preventative Maintenance teams.
• Take ownership of the end-to-end maintenance service, from triage and contractor instruction through to completion, communication and final sign-off.
• Provide technical guidance across commercial building maintenance, including HVAC systems, building fabric and associated services.
• Assess reported faults, challenge proposed solutions and promote a right-first-time approach to repairs.
• Manage contractor performance, supplier relationships, quotations, tender activity and cost negotiations.
• Monitor expenditure against approved budgets and ensure robust financial control through accurate invoice scrutiny and cost management.
• Ensure compliance with relevant health and safety requirements and safe contractor management procedures.
• Produce management information relating to maintenance performance, budgets, supplier performance and service levels.
• Use maintenance data to identify recurring issues, improve service delivery and drive continuous improvement initiatives.
• Build strong relationships with internal stakeholders, dealerships and suppliers, providing clear and professional communication throughout.

About You

We are looking for a highly professional, motivated and self-managed maintenance professional who can confidently balance operational priorities with sound technical and commercial decision-making. You will be an effective people leader, capable of developing teams, challenging suppliers and building strong working relationships across a large and diverse organisation.

You will bring significant experience within commercial property maintenance, facilities management, construction or the wider built environment. You will have experience managing reactive and planned maintenance activities across multiple sites and be comfortable operating within a fast-paced environment where customer service, safety and cost control are equally important.

With responsibility for a substantial national property portfolio, you will play an instrumental role in maintaining high operational standards, managing budgets effectively and ensuring our dealerships remain safe, compliant and fit for purpose.

We are also looking for someone with the following knowledge, skills and attributes:

• Demonstrable management experience within commercial property maintenance, facilities management, construction or the wider built environment.
• Strong practical knowledge of commercial building fabric and services, including HVAC systems.
• Experience managing reactive and planned maintenance programmes across multiple sites.
• Contractor management, tendering, estimating and supplier negotiation skills.
• Budget management, financial control and invoice scrutiny experience.
• Good understanding of health and safety legislation and contractor compliance requirements.
• Sound knowledge of building contracts and commercial maintenance principles.
• Strong organisational and problem-solving capabilities.
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Excel, Word and property maintenance systems.
• A relevant qualification within building services, facilities management, construction, project management or building surveying would be advantageous.

What you can expect

If you are successful, you can look forward to a challenging and rewarding role, together with a range of benefits you would expect from an employer of choice, including:

• Competitive salary depending on experience.
• Company Car
• 25 days holiday rising with length of service plus bank holidays.
• Access to our online reward platform giving you cashback and discounts with multiple retailers, Vertu Rewards.
• Colleague Purchase Scheme.
• Preferential Service Rates.
• Share Incentive Scheme.
• Pension.
• Enhanced Maternity & Paternity benefits.

Apply today to be considered for this exciting opportunity to join the Vertu Motors