Role

Director

Location

Málaga, Spain

As the Director of Gleeds' Malaga office, Robert Burgess oversees operations across Andalucia, Spain. He also coordinates Gleeds' European Building Surveying services, collaborating with other Gleeds offices and local partners. His responsibilities include liaising with clients, working on proposal documents and supporting the Due Diligence and Project Monitoring teams to meet their deadlines.

Despite the shift to hybrid work post-pandemic, Robert maintains regular site visits and conducts client and internal meetings. He also focuses on business development, seeking new opportunities and ensuring existing clients’ expectations are exceeded, which often leads to repeat business and new client recommendations.

Robert is motivated by ensuring client satisfaction and maintaining consistency in the services provided across multiple countries. He was drawn to building surveying due to the variety of projects and travel opportunities. Robert appreciates the company's friendly, relaxed atmosphere, opportunities for career progression, and the chance to work on impressive projects over his 26-year tenure. Robert values the friendliness and supportiveness of his team and the broader Gleeds community. He highlights the company's relaxed and flexible culture and the long tenure of many staff members as a testament to the positive work environment. He advises newcomers to embrace and enjoy the company's values and culture, as it enhances daily work satisfaction and rewards.

Robert's proudest achievements include developing Gleeds’ Building Surveying department in Madrid from a small team to a large, multi-discipline team with a strong reputation among clients. Additionally, he successfully established the Malaga office in 2007, which now has a solid presence in Andalucia and has contributed to major projects across various sectors with support from the Madrid-based project management and cost management teams.

Outside of work, Robert enjoys spending quality time with his family, walking his dogs and watching football. He also takes his youngest son to training and matches and occasionally plays padel tennis, a sport that has gained popularity in Spain. If Robert hadn’t pursued building surveying, he might have followed his initial plan to study Computer Science. However, he does not regret his decision to switch to Building Surveying at the last minute.