A Day in the Life of Mark Davey

Are you interested in the world of pipes and the people who work in it? Do you know your flanges from your welded pipe? Do you want to get a glimpse into the lives of our fantastic employees around the world? Our new series of blogs will have you feeling like you are one of the team!

First up, we interviewed Mark Davey who is a Director at Special Piping Materials in Perth, Western Australia.

A day in the life of Mark Davey

1. So, Mark, how long have you worked in your current job?

I have worked for Special Piping Materials for eight years in September and have been in my current role as Director for about 18 months. I originally started as a Sales Manager.

2. What is the first thing you do every morning when you get to work?

I greet all the staff, finish my morning coffee and then check in on the sales figures for the month and update myself on any movements in exchange rates.

3. What are three things that you do every day?

My days are usually very diverse due to our wide range of clients in different industries like petrochemical and Oil & Gas, but in general, I follow up on the status of project work we are coordinating and how our suppliers are tracking against communicated lead times. I also make sure that I regularly check-in with employees to see where everyone is up to and I monitor upcoming opportunities for business

4. How do you end your working day?

I usually finish by sending emails to contacts out of our time zone in the hope of getting a response for the start of the next business day.

5. What’s your drink of choice?

Either water or coffee, white with no sugar or if I’m feeling fancy a Long Macchiato from the coffee shop nearby!

6. What keeps you motivated at work each day?

I enjoy developing new business leads and growing our existing customer base so that we can further expand Special Piping Materials’ reach within Australasia. Seeing the sales figures increase each month and meeting new clients is a great motivator!

7. Reflect back from Day One to now. How have you evolved in your current job?

I have moved from a sales role to a management role that now encompasses overseeing all aspects of how we do business. I’m still learning as I go but I am enjoying my career progression and all the challenges that I face.

8. What advice would you give someone who is seeking the same line of work?

Try and keep a level head about things as nothing is ever as bad as it seems, as stressful as it might seem at the time! Try and develop the skill set of your staff so that you can delegate, which is a much more efficient way of working for everyone.

9. How do you cope with challenges in your job?

I try to take a step back and come up with a plan of attack and discuss the problem with colleagues within the group for support, advice and guidance. Together we can usually come up with a solution – that’s the benefit of how such a large team around the world.

10. What are your hobbies outside of work?

I like to swim and have enjoyed competitive swimming all of my life. I also like to watch a fair bit of sport (go the mighty Fremantle Dockers!) and of course spend time with my family (wife and two young daughters).

11. Which of the other offices would you like to work in and why?

One day I would like to see the Houston office and to understand how business is done there. It wouldn’t hurt to enjoy some of the American sport outside of office life as well!

12. If you could choose any other job in the company what would you choose and why?

Sales positions have always been my strength so I think I would like to extend myself with a role that undertakes more project documentation work and possibly expediting. I muck in in my current role as it allows me to be involved in so many different parts of the business.