Northern Insight meets Fokhrul Islam
Who are Mr Fokhrul Islam & Northern Gas and Power Ltd?
From humble beginnings in his bedroom in South Shields, Fokhrul Islam has lead Northern Gas & Power Ltd to become a global force in the energy industry. It is with his vision, drive and determination to succeed in an extremely competitive market place that he has become a force to be reckoned with. Mr Islam had previously worked in several positions, including the business telecom market, as well as with energy consultancies. It was with a talent for identifying problems, and by thinking outside the box he came up against management teams who could not grasp his vision for change, and where his suggested solutions would take them, almost to the point of being considered an upstart or a negative influence. But this was far from the case.
This brought him to the point of deciding to go it alone, and in his eyes, do things “properly”. With a true insight into the customer journey and realising what was missing from that, as well as acknowledging the importance of the people around you and the valuable input they can lend to any given situation. In fact, “in our information-driven world, how much you know makes more difference to your longterm success than how much money you have or almost anything else”.
In the beginning, suppliers would not take the time to speak to us, and an agreement with a third party pricing firm had to be set up to be able to gain pricing and put contracts into place for our customers. Things have changed quite considerably since then. Our relationships with the major suppliers and networks throughout the UK and around the world enable NGP to provide a professional service that has a platinum seal of approval from our clientele.
Rapid Expansion
We are very much target driven, and our global expansion has been part of our business vision from the very beginning. To have an office in Texas was always the dream. We have developed an amazing team of talented energy consultants, technical experts and management whose knowledge and work ethic have driven my dream and vision. This can clearly be seen in offices in Gateshead, Paris, Chennai, Texas and Malta & Leeds.
Fokhrul Islam the employer.
Voted Best place to work in the UK 2017 – Chartered Management Institute and Glassdoor, 2017 Winner of Director of the Year – Energy Efficiency and Healthy Homes National Awards 2017 Energy Consultancy of the Year 2018 – NE Energy Efficiency and Healthy Homes National Awards 2018.
Northern Gas & Power have recently been on the BBC discussing your “Work Life Balance” for your employees, could you please explain what sets NGP apart from the company next door?
Great question. This is not an easy job at the end of the day, and everyone in NGP including the director started from picking up that phone and contacting businesses, developing their skills and understanding of the role before progressing into management. This is vital, management know what each and every team member is experiencing on a daily basis. We know how hard the NGP family work, and this is rewarded in many ways. On top of their standard 28 days holidays per year, we do not want our team to work in December. We divide the yearly target by 11, and once we hit that target, (usually by the first week in December), we send the team home to spend time with their families and ask them not to come back until January. This is a great motivator, and creates a fantastic atmosphere.
I know how hard we work, and I appreciate it can be a very stressful environment, but I also realise that life-work balance is imperative. I am a family man myself, and I insist that our workforce has the time off to enjoy with their family and friends. I want them to remember why they go to work each day and to prioritise their goals in life. This ultimately gives our NGP family time to recuperate and come back full of drive, and enthusiasm lending to a happier and more productive goal driven company. I think that the awards we have received in recent months speak for themselves and I am extremely proud of our ever expanding global team.
