Building a Thriving Culture During a Period of Sustained Growth
What does it really take to build a thriving culture during a period of massive growth?
For Lesley Purdie, Group HR Director here at Serbus, the answer is: Experience and empathy over ego.
As we continue to bring businesses together under the Serbus brand, and protect the critical communications infrastructure the UK relies on, our people remain our greatest asset.
That becomes even more important in a private equity-backed buy-and-build environment, where the pace of change can be significant. Bringing founder-led SME businesses into a growing group isn’t simply about systems, structures and brands, it’s about bringing people with you, retaining the knowledge and talent that made those businesses successful, and creating new opportunities for them as part of something bigger.
We sat down with Lesley to chat about how to build top-performing teams:
What is your favourite thing about your role and why?
Definitely the people, without question. We’re working hard to build a culture where everyone genuinely supports each other and shares knowledge. We’re going through a sustained period of growth and transformation where integration has to be handled with intent, and that only works if people come together, adapt, and leave their egos at the door. That’s exactly why “experience and empathy over ego” became one of our core values. It is central to getting the balance right.
In your career, what are the key traits of top-performing teams?
The best teams have strong leadership, clear goals and can give and receive honest feedback. That’s especially important following an acquisition. You want talented people to feel that they still have a voice and a meaningful role in the future of the business. People need to understand how their role contributes and know their efforts are seen and appreciated, which is a big focus for us at Serbus right now. Top-performing teams also need to have trust and be able to challenge constructively and ask each other for help. Clarity, accountability, trust, recognition and low ego make the magic happen.
How do you actually spot ’empathy over ego’ when interviewing candidates? Interviews should always be a friendly, two-way conversation. You can usually spot empathy in how someone talks about their previous teams, difficult situations, and what they’ve learnt from past mistakes. Do they recognise other people’s contributions?
In a business like ours, where we protect critical UK communications infrastructure, technical skills matter, but trust and judgement matter equally as much. Our CEO built his leadership team with low ego as a key factor, and we recruit across the business with that exact same mindset.
How do you support workforce wellbeing in such a high-pressure environment?
We introduced phase one of our new benefit programme earlier this year, focusing heavily on physical, mental and financial wellbeing. And we understand wellbeing isn’t just about benefits. In a high-pressure environment, it’s about having the right team structure, realistic conversations and a culture where people feel totally safe to speak up if they’re struggling.
Bringing different businesses together under one brand is a challenge. How are you keeping people engaged?
There’s a particular pace of change that comes with a PE-backed buy-and-build strategy, and keeping people engaged through that means listening, communicating clearly, creating certainty where you can, and making sure people understand both where the Group is going and the role they can play in it.
Our January rebrand was a key milestone as it helped us shift from separately acquired businesses to one shared, unifying identity. We workshopped our values with our people, so they feel authentic and ownership of the Brand and what is means for them and customers, rather than something created in isolation.
If a young professional wants to build a career at Serbus, what is the one crucial ‘soft skill’ they need?
Curiosity. Don’t be afraid to ask questions or ask for help. In a technical business, no one expects you to know everything early in your career. The people who develop quickest are the ones who ask, listen and stay open to feedback. That curiosity can unlock real opportunities as Serbus continues to grow. A role that may have had a relatively defined path within a standalone SME can open into new teams, disciplines and leadership opportunities
We’re putting significant focus on early careers, apprenticeships, and development pathways because we want people to see a long-term future with Serbus.
Any final thoughts?
We’ve made a strong start, but we’re still in the early stages of our transformation. Buy-and-build can move incredibly quickly, particularly in a PE-backed business, but sustainable growth depends on taking people with you. By retaining and building upon the expertise of the businesses joining Serbus, while providing people with greater opportunities to develop and progress, we’ll achieve together and create something much stronger than the sum of its parts. That’s what I’m excited about as we continue the journey.