Clearview National November 2018 - Issue 204 | Page 46

DIRECTOROFTHEMONTH
Fenestration’s new high flyer
» » FOR NOVEMBER’S DIRECTOR OF
the Month, Clearview caught up with RAF
Wing Commander turned Managing Director
at SolarFrame Ltd; Matt Grafton, and asks
how 20 years as a navigator in the Royal Air
Force has prepared him for navigating his way
through the world of doors and windows…
NAME/JOB TITLE:
Matt Grafton, Managing Director,
SolarFrame Ltd.
WHEN DID YOU JOIN (OR
START) THE COMPANY?
The process began over 12 months ago when
I met Steve Taylor in April 2017. I was at a stage
in my RAF career when I was thinking about
the next challenge, and Steve was thinking about
his own retirement, and by May we started to
discuss the potential of me becoming Managing
Director at SolarFrame Ltd. From August 2018
I spent two days a month here at Goldthorpe,
where I had the freedom of the shop floor to get
up to speed with the people, the processes and
the industry, then officially started full time on
7th June this year.
DESCRIBE YOUR WORKING
DAY (FROM THE TIME YOU
LEAVE THE HOUSE, ETC.)
SolarFrame Ltd is going through some very
exciting changes at the moment with our solid
roof manufacturing moving to a brand-new
site at Capitol Park in Dodworth. As such,
my day begins at around 7.15am at the new
factory to see how the project is progressing
and if we’re on track for the move in January.
As the solid roof department takes up around
half the current 23,000ft2 plant here in
Goldthorpe, the move is doubly exciting as
we hope to increase window production from
around 400-450 frames per week to 700-800
per week over the next 12-18 months.
FIRST THING YOU DO WHEN
YOU GET TO YOUR DESK?
I start on the shop floor, to say ‘good
morning’ to the team and get a feel of the
atmospherics and how production is going.
After that, around 60-70% of my day is
conducting routine business activity within
SolarFrame. The remainder of my time is
currently taken with project managing the
Capitol Park move and exploring ways to
increase efficiency in preparation for the
anticipated increase in capacity.
WHAT IS YOUR WORKSPACE LIKE?
I operate an open discussion/open door
policy and encourage engagement from my
employees to improve the business. My office
reflects this approach especially in the form of
the whiteboard where I map out the process
and ideas that I have discussed with the team.
I rely on the expertise and experience of those
around me to provide their ideas so that I can
make informed decisions on how to take the
business to the next level.
WHAT WEBSITES HELP YOU?
Well, at the moment our focus is to work
on our trade presence online, in line with a
revamped trade magazine, so if you ask me
this question in the near future, I would say
the SolarFrame trade website for local and
national installers and fitters will be the best
website I use!
MOST USEFUL BUSINESS
TOOL? (SAT NAV/APPS ETC.)
Sounds old fashioned, but as I mentioned
before, my office white board is my most
useful tool brainstorming ideas and capturing
ideas to allow ‘decision making through
information’. A valuable lesson I learnt from
the RAF is to use the talent in your team and
getting them involved throughout any change
– the team is a great source of information to
find the best ideas and try new things.
BEST BUSINESS DECISION IN
YOUR CURRENT ROLE?
Taking the role here at SolarFrame has been
my best decision so far. I had a job for life in
the RAF and when I first told people I was
leaving it certainly raised a few eyebrows. While
to some it may seem a strange decision, I knew
it was the right one for me, and an outstanding
opportunity. An organisation is an organisation.
The principles are the same. People skills and
knowing how to get the most out of a team
remains the same no matter the organisation.
FAVOURITE ROLE
MODELS AND WHY?
Whilst there are some incredible people
in our society, I need to know someone
personally to see them as a role model, so I
would have to say my parents. Their support
has been invaluable throughout my career but
I remember when I was around 19, my dad
shared a famous quote with me: Grant me the
serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
the courage to change the things I can, and the
wisdom to know the difference. It is something
that stuck and can be used to help bring
balance and perspective to many situations.
HOW DO YOU UNWIND?
Having been in some very stressful and
dangerous situations in the past, I actually find
it relatively easy to unwind and switch off.
However, as father to three children and ‘chief
taxi driver’ most of my time is spent driving
them around to football, cubs, ballet, drama,
etc. and I also coach my son’s rugby team, so
sometimes it’s a relief to get back to work on
Monday morning.
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