{"id":22044,"date":"2024-06-21T08:30:00","date_gmt":"2024-06-21T07:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ocs.com\/uk\/?p=22044"},"modified":"2026-03-04T12:13:51","modified_gmt":"2026-03-04T12:13:51","slug":"a-world-fm-day-celebration-victoria-thursfield-account-director","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ocs.com\/uk\/news\/a-world-fm-day-celebration-victoria-thursfield-account-director\/","title":{"rendered":"International Women in Engineering Day: Victoria Thursfield, Account Director"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Victoria Thursfield, in her role as the Account Director on OCS\u2019s Government Property Agency (GPA) contract, holds a pivotal position overseeing critical sites for the UK government. Notably, she is responsible for managing key locations. Victoria\u2019s career spans diverse industries and countries, and she has worked with high-profile clientele. We sat down with Victoria to delve into her professional journey thus far, exploring the factors that have shaped her career as a woman in the challenging field of hard services<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Victoria\u2019s entry into the facilities management (FM) business was serendipitous. Her career trajectory began in the catering industry, with a graduate job at Compass and a stint at the food chain Pret-A-Manger. Her rapid ascent within Pret-A-Manger led her to establish the business in Hong Kong, where she spent three years. “We needed to be quite self-sufficient because you didn\u2019t have the support of the UK business. I think that was a good grounding for then working in FM,\u201d she recalls.<\/p>\n

Upon her return to the UK, Victoria\u2019s CV found its way to the desk of a managing director of a leading FM business. This marked her foray into the FM world, where she initially managed the retail sector. As she gained experience and made her mark within the company, she took on more accounts, eventually leading her to engineering, marking a new chapter in her career. Despite not being an engineer herself, Victoria pursued an interest she always knew was there. \u201cMy father is a civil engineer, so I think there\u2019s always been a bit of interest there,\u201d she shares.<\/p>\n <\/section>\n\n\n

\n

Victoria has spent a total of 19 years within the FM industry, strengthening and developing her expertise, and building a strong network. She joined OCS in October 2023, where she now oversees the technical services contract for GPA. She thrives on the dynamism of the FM industry, stating, \u201cNo day is ever the same.\u201d On joining OCS she says, \u201cI’ve now been here six months and I can tell it\u2019s ultimately about the people, OCS say people are at the heart of what they do and that feels true, you know, OCS delivers its values throughout. Despite my short time here, I feel like my voice will be heard, which is quite comforting. To be so new in a significantly significant sized company, I still feel I have influence and will be listened to and that\u2019s a valuable thing.\u201d She also particularly enjoys setting up new teams and developing people, a task she is currently undertaking on the GPA contract.<\/p>\n

However, Victoria\u2019s switch to engineering has not been without its challenges. As a woman in a male-dominated field, she often found herself the only woman in the room. Despite this, she credits her supportive and receptive teams for helping her navigate these challenges. She remains hopeful and proactive in recruiting more women into hard services, working with social value practitioners and attending career fairs to promote hard services as a career option for young women.<\/p>\n

In her current role within the hard services division, Victoria is excited about the future of OCS. \u201cI think we have some very challenging and ambitious targets and it\u2019s quite an exciting time to join,\u201d she says. She wants women curious about hard services to know that there\u2019s nothing stopping them from diving in. \u201cIt\u2019s not all about knowing how a fan coil unit works, or what happens in a plant room, it\u2019s about not being afraid to ask questions,\u201d she advises.<\/p>\n

Victoria\u2019s journey is a testament to her resilience and adaptability. From her early days in the catering industry to her current role in FM, she has consistently demonstrated her ability to thrive in new environments and take on challenges head-on. Her story serves as an inspiration for women looking to break barriers in traditionally male-dominated fields.<\/p>\n <\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Victoria Thursfield, in her role as the Account Director on OCS\u2019s Government Property Agency (GPA) contract, holds a pivotal position overseeing critical sites for the UK government.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":62,"featured_media":10000018519,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[288,291,56,474,475,287,19],"tags":[214,53],"country":[],"class_list":["post-22044","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","category-hard-services","category-industry-news","category-international-days","category-international-womens-day","category-news","category-news-type","tag-hard-services","tag-our-people"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nA World FM Day Celebration: Victoria Thursfield, Account Director<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Victoria Thursfield, Account Director on OCS\u2019s Government Property Agency contract overseeing sites for the UK government\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ocs.com\/uk\/news\/a-world-fm-day-celebration-victoria-thursfield-account-director\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"International Women in Engineering Day: Victoria Thursfield, Account Director\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Victoria Thursfield, Account Director on OCS\u2019s Government Property Agency contract overseeing sites for the UK government\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/ocs.com\/uk\/news\/a-world-fm-day-celebration-victoria-thursfield-account-director\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"OCS - 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