A Day in the Life of an Area Manager

Name: Omar Tarek Alata

Job Title: Area Manager – Greater London and South England

What is your background? 

My background covers the areas of civil engineering and construction both in terms of academic studies and work experience. Having graduated from my schooling as the top of my class with an American Diploma, I embarked on the journey of studying engineering formally as part of the BSc Civil & Construction Engineering at the German University in Cairo; it was during this time that I honed my skills in terms of understanding core and specialized  engineering aspects, as well as participating in research within the field. My academic excellence enabled me to study internationally at a sister university in Berlin and ultimately led to me graduating as the top of my batch with a distinction.

At the same time, I was actively involved in the delivery of industry projects and maintained a key working position within the industry; this allowed me to pair the knowledge accumulated as part of my degree with tangible knowledge from the field as well as enabled me to understand the workflows and processes present within the industry.

Throughout my professional career, I have held a wide range of relevant positions within the domain of civil engineering. Having started out in the industry as a Concrete Polisher and Epoxy & Resin Applicator, I am no stranger to the tangible and material dimensions of engineering field work and have a very good understanding of the physical execution of processes.

I then moved on to taking on a Technical Office and Site Internship, throughout which I was involved in day to day operations of large scale construction projects from the start, for companies such as P&G, Heinz, Mc Vitie’s, Pepsi, Coca Cola and Unilever

Following these experiences, I worked with CEMEX in a Research and Development Project for developing special coloured/fibre reinforced concrete mixes, then gained further experience as a Technical Sales Specialist. 

Having achieved considerable experience in sales, I then turned my attention to academic research once more and embarked on a teaching role at the German University in Cairo – this allowed me to considerably consolidate my extensive knowledge of engineering, as well as disseminate it to aspiring engineers.

Following this experience, I accepted a position as an Engineer Coordinator for Whitespace Architects in Dubai, which involved working closely with BIM to allow seamless cooperation between architects, structural designers and MEP consultants. I then progressed to working with other firms in further roles such as Site Supervisor and Projects Manager.

After gaining significant industry experience, I decided to act on my passion for sales and business development and made the move to London in order to study an MBA at Ulster University. At the same time, I worked with Delta Profloor in the role of an Area Manager, where I successfully made significant contributions to the development of the company in terms of both sales, marketing and operations.

How long have you worked with Geobear?

I am delighted to have started my position with Geobear Global in January 2021, and I am content with having a strong start with the company and maintaining a successful record of achievements throughout my work.

What does your job involve? 

In my position as an Area Manager, I am responsible for assessing the subsidence and structural problems of a wide variety of structures, interpreting the provided information from the client such as the Site Investigation/ Subsidence Assessment/ Arboriculturist Report/ CCTV Drain Survey/ Monitoring Results/Demanded Structural Loads/ etc.., explaining all technical aspects of our solution to the clients,  and designing and quoting tailored technical treatment schemes for the particularities of each project.

I then work closely with the Handover team to prepare all the relevant required documents , such as RAMS/CPP, in order to seamlessly pass the project to the Delivery Team.

As part of my position, I strive towards maintaining company standards and increasing sales, driving company growth and achieving targets successfully. I am passionate about actively exploring and applying innovative solutions and discovering creative methods for meeting the most demanding needs of our customers.

What is a typical day/ week like in your role? 

Everyday is like a marathon. It is an immense responsibility that we hold in our hands in terms of dealing with the people’s homes and safety. We have to be very accurate, precise and efficient in everything we are doing.

My typical day contains an average of 30 emails, 20 calls, 2 technical designs, 3 online consultations and/or site assessments.

What do you enjoy most about your job? 

Helping a big number of people and providing genuine value to Geobear’s clients. When it comes to the nature of our job, there are myriad ways in which the problem could be interpreted wrong, as we work with very complex data that involves a lot of unknown variables and sometimes unforeseen circumstances; as such, there is a tremendous amount of effort towards achieving the correct answer for each case. You have to combine all the building experience and geotechnical knowledge that you have in order to provide the most optimum solution.

This brings us to the second most joyful point I have about my job: team work! Working within Geobear is like working with a big family full of expertise in various industry aspects. I always appreciate the help and the extensive technical discussions with my peers, as well as the rigorous quality checks that the company puts in place. Above all, it is inspiring to be part of a company culture that strives to serve more people and provide exceptional solutions through premium service, and I am most excited about being able to impact customer’s lives in a positive way.

If someone was interested in pursuing a career in your role, what would you like them to know? 

First of all, WELCOME to the GEOBEAR family!

It is indispensable to be knowledgeable about buildings, understand structural loads flow and analysis, and have an excellent understanding of  soil mechanics, types and how they behave.

You have to be ready to learn and implement swiftly, be very adaptable, extremely efficient and organized, have a strong work ethic and apply the company policies.

You will need to put in consistent work, enjoy the numerous challenges and, of course, ambition and focus on the prize are key!