Kirsty Carroll’s Inspiring Journey from Helpdesk Operator to Central Operations Director

Kirsty Carroll is our dynamic Central Operations Director at OCS, overseeing all helpdesk operations across technical services in both the public and private sectors. She joined OCS three years ago as Head of Customer Operations, managing dedicated helpdesks, and was promoted to her current role a year ago.

Kirsty’s journey in facilities management (FM) began right after school, where she worked as a helpdesk operator for a prominent FM company, logging maintenance jobs on their CAFM system. Initially overwhelmed by the high call and job volumes, she quickly adapted and discovered her knack for the work, solidifying her career in FM.

After 18 years in the company’s retail sector, she felt she had explored every corner of what the business had to offer and sought new opportunities. Inspired by OCS’s business win news, she reached out to the MD and quickly secured a job after an interview. OCS offered Kirsty a chance to step out of her retail comfort zone and engage with a variety of public and private sector contracts. 

Kirsty thrives on the drive and challenge of working in FM. She manages a team of over 200 people and is passionate about people management, having moved through the ranks of the helpdesk herself. She believes in rewarding perseverance within her team by promoting from within and acknowledges the demanding nature of helpdesk work.

One of the significant challenges Kirsty faces is navigating the variety of contracts, especially business-critical P1 jobs. Her team manages these jobs and communicates effectively with technicians and customers. She successfully consolidated dedicated helpdesks from individual customer sites into a centralised Glasgow hub, enhancing resilience and workload distribution.

For Kirsty one of her most cherished career moments was when in 2009, only in her early 20s she mobilised her first contract in Australia. Since then, she has mobilised around 40 contracts. Although this is not a formal part of her role, this achievement is one she takes great pride in.

When we asked Kirsty what advice she’d give to women or anyone considering joining the technical services sector, she emphasised the importance of attitude: “Attitude is absolutely everything. You need to have a can-do attitude and be willing to come up with new ideas and push the boundaries.” She also highlights the value of learning from mistakes: “It’s important to know you can make mistakes. I’ve definitely made a few mistakes in my career, but it’s crucial to understand the rationale behind them and learn from them.”