Meet the boss
Howard Rogers
By Ron Godfrey
OUR NEXT boss to meet is 48-year old Howard Rogers the speed-loving managing director of Malton-based Redworth Construction.
Redworth is one of the top construction companies in Yorkshire, with a portfolio that extends across the country.
Founded by Howard five years ago, he has slowly and deliberately built up Redworth's reputation for residential and nursing care homes, children's day nurseries and housing association projects. His firm also undertakes office and private residential housing developments.
But in every other way, Howard is a speed junkie, stemming from the days when he used to tear around the North Yorkshire countryside in the trusty blue, white-roofed Mini Cooper 5 he built for rallying from a bare shell.
All that came to an end when at one rally he rolled the four-wheeled little devil several times over at a hairy bend near Sunk Island in Hull. "All that was injured was my pride," he recalls.
But even today he loves tinkering with his 20-year-old 4X4 110 Land Rover, or taking off in his year-old Range Rover Sports or straining neck tendons as he zooms along the German Nurburgring racing track in a red TVR, whose 3.6 litre hand-made 350 brake horsepower engine powers it from 0 to 60 mph in four seconds.
But when it comes to his business, he is slightly more cautious. "I don't rush into things. Even when I make positive decisions, I sleep on them before acting," he says.
The result has been amazing - a long list of clients attracted by the company's use of the latest design techniques and, where possible, ecofriendly products, as well as its onestop shop, from land identification and acquisition, through to design and build and financial advice and solutions.
Local projects have included nursing homes for Southern Cross in York; a residential home for Disability Action Yorkshire in Harrogate; and a canteen and play area for York City Council.
But it has also completed care homes for Carebase in Abingdon, Burnt Oak, Histon and Waltham Abbey; nursing homes for Meridian Healthcare in Staleybridge, Duckinfield and Huyton, with a further Meridian Healthcare project expected to start in Leeds early next year; nursery and offices for Berkeley Homes in Oxford; a care home for Private Medicare in Hull; and social and specialist housing for Accent North West in Keighley After only five years of trading, turnover is expected to top £22 million this year with an anticipated turnover in the region of £30 million next year, 42 direct employees and 500 who are subcontracted.
As a result of all that success, the firm is relocating to a purpose-built £5 million office development in Old Malton next year.
Howard himself hails from the village of Westow, near Malton. He and has family moved to Scarborough when he was young.
After leaving Sherburn school, he worked with Wards of Sherburn for 20 years, before setting up a northern division of the Denne construction group. He left Denne in 2001 to form Redworth Construction.
Howard says: "A large percentage of profits are invested back into the company to ensure that our future is founded on a solid and structured basis.
"It is important to stress that we work with companies of all sizes. It is the character and quality of the scheme which is important, not the size of the company"
Meanwhile he cannot apply any logic to his enthusiasm for speed. "I go with my family to Eurodisney where I just love the Rocking Roller Coaster which accelerates from 0 - 60 mph in two seconds.
"Eventually, the kids say to me: "Come on, dad, it's time to go home now".
Which job (other than your own) would you like to have and why?
Driving a Formula One car, because I enjoy motor sport and get a real thrill out of speed. I would especially like to be Jenson Button's team-mate.
Greatest achievement?
I have just celebrated 20 years of a very happy marriage to my wife Dawn. That, and my two children, Gareth, aged 18, and Zoe, aged 14, give me the greatest joy.
Biggest mistake?
I wish I had started Redworth Construction sooner. The satisfaction of running my own successful company is amazing.
What makes you most angry?
Poor service and people who do not deliver what they promise.
What makes you laugh?
Peter Kay and Billy Connolly are very funny indeed.
Who do you most admire and why?
Damon Hill. He was the perfect gentleman in Formula One, the toughest of sporting arenas. Even when he was denied the championship by some questionable tactics from Michael Schumacher, he maintained his calm and dignity.
What fools do you suffer least?
Liars.
What do you need to make life complete?
I'm pretty happy with my lot in life at present, but I wouldn't say no to a villa in the south of France.
How do you relax?
Walking in the Yorkshire Moors or the Lake District, travelling in the south of France and enjoying every aspect of motor sport.
Why do you make a difference?
I do my best to adhere to old-fashioned values, such as respecting others, being fair to everyone and treating every employee at Redworth Construction as a real person.
Name the organisation you see as the perfect one and why?
Meridian Health Care, of Hyde, near Manchester because its chief executive Alan Firth has brilliantly converted former Council-run homes for the elderly into a portfolio of privately operated care homes throughout the Manchester and Liverpool areas. He has achieved tremendously high standards through his employees' team spirit and sensitivity for his residents.
Favourite record?
Bat Out Of Hell by Meatloaf.
Favourite holiday destination?
South of France.
Your epitaph
He was valued as a husband, father, friend and employer.
