Partner Article

Then and now... Jamie Mableson

In the latest instalment of Bdaily’s Then and now series, Jamie Mableson, founder and managing director of connectivity, managed IT and property services firm Fuse, charts his route from teenage barman to chartered surveyor and beyond.

You're the founder and director of Fuse. What does your role entail?

I don't even know where to start with that! We’re a growing business with a small but committed team — my role’s essentially dealing with everything from finance to finding new business and working closely with the companies we collaborate with.

The new Fuse website has just launched and our branding and messaging has been adjusted to better reflect how we’re developing as a full-circle provider of services to property owners and their occupiers.

I’ve enjoyed taking a lead on developing the ‘Connect. Manage. Protect.’ message that sits at the heart of Fuse.

One of the things I love about my role is that I’m able to help people in a similar position to me — entrepreneurs and owners of growing businesses — to save money and to achieve their goals.

I’ve always been very hands on. My background as a chartered surveyor and project manager means I’m in a great position to help a business move into a new property and become fully operational within a very short space of time.

Did you always want to work in the property services? Or did you have other ambitions when you were growing up?

I remember watching White Men Can’t Jump for the first time and deciding I wanted to become a professional basketball player!

That didn’t happen, unfortunately, but I’ve enjoyed supporting Newcastle Eagles and their work in the community for the last few years. I love my basketball and it’s the next best thing!

I got into quantity surveying because my friend’s dad had a nice car. He was a quantity surveyor so I set my sights on that.

I studied surveying at university and quickly moved into project management, property development and property investment.

But it was only when I started to visit sites and become part of various project management teams that I reaIised I could make an impact in the wider property services sector.

What was your first job and did you enjoy it?

I worked at the Top Deck Nightclub in Redcar — I was born in Saltburn by the Sea and lived in New Marske until I went to university.

Top Deck was owned by Tony Zivanaris who also owned the Vermont and Martha’s Bar in Newcastle.

I needed a job over the summer holidays after finishing school and I literally flicked through the Yellow Pages and made a note of the numbers of all the pubs and clubs around Teesside.

I rang Top Deck and they said they were hiring bar staff. I did my training on the Thursday morning and by Thursday night I was pulling pints.

Back then the tills didn’t add up the total bar bill so I had to do everything in my head and then punch the final number in. Fortunately, I’ve always been good at mental arithmetic.

When I moved to Newcastle as a student I was able to move from Top Deck to Martha’s. I loved both jobs.

Were there any mentors or individuals that helped shape your career? And are you still applying lessons you learned then to your workforce of today?

When I first started working at ICI, my old boss said to me ‘You've got two ears and one mouth for a reason: listen twice as much as you say’.

He also told me I should start smoking so that I could meet people in the smoking room. That advice didn't really stick with me in the same way!

Listening more than talking really resonated with me so I've put that into practice from day one: always listen to what people want rather than tell them what they want.

I developed that approach working as a project manager, determining what our clients required and making sure we interpreted it correctly so that the contractors could build it.

This followed through into Fuse. We make sure that whatever our clients need or want, they get. We don't want to dictate to them what we think they want. 

What attracted you to the property services business and what persuaded you to found Fuse?

My experience as a quantity surveyor and project managing on construction sites — as well as managing a portfolio of commercial properties — opened my eyes to the fact that there was a demand for smarter solutions to efficient working.

When we started the business we focused on three things: to save money for people who had empty properties; to help contractors on site get connected; and to work with landlords to set up infrastructure.

We realised there was a demand for temporary networks in remote locations and that’s when we started working with TV and film production crews.

We helped crew and cast stay connected on shows like Bridgerton and The Witcher and then it became obvious that the technology we were using could help both tenants and landlords.

The decision to rebrand as Fuse earlier this year reflects everything we’ve learnt during the last decade and explains the move to add the ‘Protect’ and ‘Manage’ elements to our core connectivity service.

How do you feel you’ve changed as a person over the years? Have career roles brought new dimensions to your personality?

I’ve definitely changed but one thing’s stayed the same — I’ve always wanted to learn.

I’ve never wanted to stagnate and that’s why Fuse continues to evolve in terms of the services it offers, its key messaging and its ambition.

I’m always looking at what I can bring to the business and that includes what I can add to the mix myself by expanding my own skillset.

I’ve always tried to educate myself — even if I’m not able to perform a specific task I like to know what’s required and to be able to support our team.

Working in a number of different roles within the property services sector has only increased that thirst for knowledge.

And AI is something I’m fascinated by. It’s important for Fuse that my mind’s open when it comes to the opportunities and challenges AI presents.

You’ve seen many changes to the employment world across your career — how do you see the workplace evolving in years to come?

I like to think that the workplace will become increasingly connected in years to come.

We’ve made giant strides during the last few years but Fuse is developing a number of new systems that will enable landlords to better manage their properties safe in the knowledge that data security is of paramount importance.

AI is already affecting the workplace and at Fuse it’s had a hugely positive effect in terms of productivity and realising our potential as a business.

I also see an increasing move back towards working in offices rather than remote working.

It’s impossible to underestimate the value of face-to-face relationships and collaborations. I think things will go full circle following the pandemic with more and more people returning to the workplace.

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This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Simon Rushworth .