Bike enthusiast Richard might have put his plans to be the oldest ever winner of the Tour de France on the back burner – but his career is definitely speeding ahead since he joined ENSEK. In this interview, he tells us about his new role, his plans for the future at ENSEK, and the three Ps that convinced him to join our team: position, platform and people.
There’s our industry-leading platform Ignition, there are our wonderful clients, and right in between them, there’s Professional Services: the bridge connecting the two, supporting the sales, customer service and product teams by providing sector-specific, client-focused expertise.
This is the team that Richard Freeman – new dad, bike enthusiast and tech expert – is leading since January 2nd. After a successful international career in technology & consulting, Richard has found his perfect niche at ENSEK, where he’s busy building productive relationships within the business and with our current clients. But let’s learn a bit more about his background and what brought him to ENSEK – as well as what he’s planning for the future.
What was your career path before joining ENSEK?
I started my career in technology by joining Accenture, where I worked with very large clients across a wide number of industries, before joining EDF on the smart metering programme. The consistent thread while working there was SAP and its various reporting platforms. However, after five years I started to think about changing direction, moving into the exciting world of analytics rather than specialising in a technology, which even at that point was becoming somewhat dated.
The opportunity presented itself to join a boutique, family-owned finance and analytics consultancy, where I was able to truly make a difference in the success of the business over the next seven years. The highlight of this period was working to expand our business in New York, where I lived for five years. We grew the team of three expatriates to a self-sustaining business ( built with local graduate recruits), and added major clients like National Grid (US) and Dell Technologies.
However, during the COVID-19 pandemic, me, my wife and our two cats – who now miaow with a Brooklyn accent – decided to move back to the UK and explore new opportunities. And I eventually found the perfect one: joining ENSEK!
What appealed to you about ENSEK?
Its position, platform and people. ENSEK is a growing business looking to scale further. It is an exciting place to work, it’s challenging in the right way, and offers the professional opportunities I was looking for.
I was also impressed with ENSEK’s platform, Ignition, and with the customers' positive comments about it. Its technology is great in a market that, based on my experience, is ready for disruption.
Finally, the colleagues I met during the interview process struck me as people I wanted to work with, and this view has only been reinforced since joining the team.
How have you settled into your role at ENSEK?
I’ve been enjoyably busy. Moving to a larger organisation, I was afraid it might take a while for the ‘machinery’ of the business to gear up to involve me. But I was pleasantly surprised to be involved in key activities right away.
That said, I very much appreciated the time and patience of my new colleagues. It’s a busy time, and managing everything while dealing with a new team member who asks a lot of questions can be a bit tough. So, I would really like to thank anyone who has run intro sessions with me and has helped me settle into the ENSK team.
What’s your goal for the next six months at ENSEK?
The thing I am most looking forward to is building good relationships within the business and with our current clients. We work in a technically challenging environment, and relations are critical to achieve the right outcome for our clients, business and people.
I am also curious to learn more about how large organisations can use data to not only create new commercial opportunities, but also lead to positive changes in behaviour. This is crucial as we seek to accelerate the energy transition, and it is something that a platform like Ignition is in a great position to capture.
ENSEK is growing quickly and has hired dozens of talented candidates in the past few months. If you’re looking to join a dynamic organisation with interesting clients and excellent opportunities for career progression, take a look at our current vacancies.
And if you’d like to know more about our industry-leading SaaS platform, reach out to our team to arrange a call back.
