Company News
Staying connected: Dean Checkley, CEO
- 11 Feb 2022
We know how vital our people are to the future of Flomatik. That’s why we want you to get to know them in a little more detail.
So, without further ado, we sat down with our CEO Dean Checkley to discuss his day-to-day responsibilities, what he gets up to outside of work and his hopes for the world of telecoms…
1. Sum up your job role and what you love best about your job
As CEO, I help to steer the good ship of Flomatik towards growth and success. What I love about my job is the people – the buzz is amazing when you are part of a thriving office. I want to ensure that people enjoy what they do, as well as understand the role they’re playing in driving the UK towards a fully connected society.
I’m always on the look-out for new opportunities to expand our portfolio of experience and to help strengthen our brand in the marketplace. Plus, we’re in a privileged position at Flomatik because we’re part of the Teleste Group and so get to be part of an even wider community of talent. All this supports my thinking and exploration of new opportunities to strengthen our strategy of ‘25 in 25’ (£25m in 2025).
2. If you had to describe Flomatik to a new recruit, what would you say?
It’s vibrant and engaging, and our people are always here to listen, support and help. They’re the ones who have created our values of customer focus, loyalty, positivity, respect and honesty. When you join Flomatik, you become part of the fabric of our business and have the opportunity to push forward the UK’s connectivity agenda.
3. Are you a face-to-face meeting person or prefer virtual gatherings?
I’m most definitely a face-to-face person. I just love being in a room full of people where you can share ideas as it helps to generate sporadic creativity in problem solving. The energy you feel when you’re together and trying to achieve something collectively is amazing, there’s nothing like it.
There’s a place for virtual gatherings too – these are a great way to engage and reach our people wherever they’re based.
4. What has been your Flomatik highlight so far?
There have been too many to count. Joining Flomatik as chief delivery officer was a highlight, and then becoming CEO and seeing our people grow. One thing I’m particularly proud of is how we dealt with the difficult challenges in 2021 and came out stronger. I could go on for days…
5. Who would be your dream client and why?
No one client is more special than the other. It’s a cliche but we treat and respect all our clients equally, whether large or small. They all play an important part in Flomatik’s history and brand direction.
Having said that, if there was ever a chance to have NASA on our books, I would love that! I’ve a huge interest in space, however, I’m not sure how we’d design fibre connectivity from the earth to the moon – that could be a tad challenging. Plus, imagine the wayleave application?!
6. Complete this sentence. Connectivity to me means…
… enabling people to stay in touch no matter where they are, or in whatever challenging environment they may find themselves in.
7. If you could invite three celebrities to your dinner party, who would they be and why?
The astronaut Jim Lovell. I’d be keen to find out how he kept his team focused on the job during the Apollo 13 mission. It’d be interesting to find out what he did to tap into his inner strength and resilience during those few days when everything was hanging in the balance. To gain insight into his NASA experiences during the Mercury and Apollo missions would be amazing.
Elon Musk to try and understand how his brain works, and to listen to how he made the transitions from creating PayPal to building electric vehicles, and then finally space vehicles – pushing the boundaries of space exploration. How do you join the dots on that one?
American aviator Amelia Earhart. A truly brave woman who defied social boundaries and forged ahead in flight exploration. The sights and perils she must have seen and experienced during her journeys would be fascinating to listen to.
8. Where would you most like to visit in the world?
Rome (again!) It has always held a romantic fascination for me and is steeped in so much history. I was very lucky that on my 50th birthday, my wife organised a surprise long weekend for us both and it was simply amazing. The culture, people, sights, food and wine were out of this world.
9. How do you wind down from a working week?
My passion is road cycling which helps to generate, and create, headspace. I use it to digest and decompose all the jumbled thoughts that are created during the week – it’s my time to wind down and relax. Walking my three dogs in the quiet of the Warwickshire countryside also helps me to relax and quieten my mind.
10. What are your ambitions – both personal and as a company – for Flomatik?
That’s easy from a Flomatik perspective – hit our ‘25 in 25’ strategic targets whilst having immense fun doing it.
From a personal perspective, it’s all about staying healthy, staying fit and completing a couple more London-to-Paris cycle rides!