Ep 23 | Leading with Purpose: Vince Simpson on Culture, Confidence and Collaboration
London Construction + Offices Podcast
Release Date: 06/30/2025
Ep 23 | Leading with Purpose: Vince Simpson on Culture, Confidence and Collaboration
London Construction + Offices Podcast
In this powerful episode, we sit down with Vince Simpson, Managing Director of Spark Collective, to unpack his remarkable journey from the east coast of Scotland to leading some of the UK’s most innovative workplace strategy and project management initiatives. Vince opens up about his childhood growing up in a single-parent household, the financial hardships his family faced, including moments of relying on food parcels and support from the Salvation Army and how early involvement in Cubs, Scouts and the Army Cadets gave him a sense of purpose and belonging. Enlisting in the army at...
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Ep 22 | Grit, Design + Global Delivery: A Conversation with Liz Purcell
London Construction + Offices Podcast
In this episode, we dive into the inspiring and dynamic career journey of Liz Purcell, currently the Global Workplace Delivery Manager at Equinix. From pulling weekly all-nighters at university to leading global teams, Liz’s path is one of passion, persistence and bold moves. Liz’s love for design was sparked by her aunt and stepmother, both interior designers. Surrounded by creative minds, she pursued a BA (Hons) in Interior Architecture, graduating with First Class Honours. A natural team player with a sporty streak, Liz balanced academic excellence with half marathons to find calm and...
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Ep 21 | Building Careers Brick by Brick with Toby Badcock
London Construction + Offices Podcast
In this episode, we sit down with Toby Badcock, Director at Cyril Leonard, to explore the personal journey behind a dynamic career in property and surveying. With roots in real estate stretching back to childhood - thanks to a grandfather who quizzed him on architectural detail - Toby reflects on how family influence, early leadership opportunities at grammar school in Kent and a love for maths and science set him on his path. Toby opens up about the ups and downs of his academic years, including a challenging A-level experience and his eventual entry into Kingston University to study building...
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Ep 20 | From Horses to High Rises – The Journey of Yaeger Irwin
London Construction + Offices Podcast
In this episode, I sit down with Yaeger Erwin, Founder of Bloom Project Management, to explore her remarkable career journey from horse-riding teenager to leading multimillion-pound construction projects—and ultimately launching her own purpose-driven business. Yaeger opens up about her early years growing up in a supportive household, how tutoring helped her earn a place at Burnham Grammar School and how she made the tough decision to choose academics over competitive horse riding at 16. A science-obsessed teen dreaming of becoming a forensic pathologist, she surprised herself by pursuing...
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Ep 19 | From Surveyor to CEO – Sam Wallis’ Journey
London Construction + Offices Podcast
In this episode, I sit down with Sam Wallis, CEO of GIA, to explore his unconventional path to leadership. Growing up in Southport and studying on the Isle of Man, Sam initially wanted to pursue a career in medicine before realising it wasn’t his true passion. His time in Edinburgh opened new doors and while he never envisioned becoming a chartered surveyor, he followed the family trade, securing a first-class degree and valuable work experience along the way. Sam shares pivotal moments from his career, including early roles at EC Harris and Malcolm Hollis (now Hollis Global) and how his...
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Ep 18 | Kara Thompson - From Small-Town Ambition to Industry Leadership
London Construction + Offices Podcast
In this episode, I sit down with Kara Thompson, a powerhouse in project management who has carved an impressive career path from Australia to London. Born in Australia, Kara was a natural overachiever — school captain, competitive athlete and eldest of four siblings. Despite excelling in science and psychology at university, she quickly realised her degree wasn’t her calling. Instead, she entered the workforce in administrative roles, starting with the Red Cross Blood Bank before transitioning to the technology and project management sectors. Her career took off when she...
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Ep 17 | The Journey of Harriet De Freitas – From Athletics to Real Estate
London Construction + Offices Podcast
In this episode, I sit down with Harriet De Freitas, a Director at Avison Young, to explore her unconventional journey into the property industry. Growing up with parents based in Africa, she spent much of her childhood moving between family and friends, always surrounded by love. Though not naturally academic, she thrived in athletics — ironically sparked by early morning detention runs at school. Harriet’s academic turning point came during her GCSEs at school in Surrey, leading her to pursue geography in her A-levels in Dorset, drawn to its links with the built environment. Despite...
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Ep 16 | Building the Future with Christopher Husband
London Construction + Offices Podcast
In this episode, we sit down with Christopher Husband, co-founder of Radcliffes, to explore his journey from a childhood fascination with property to leading a dynamic construction consultancy. Coming from a real estate family, Christopher always had an eye for the built environment, but his path wasn’t conventional - leaning more toward creativity than academia. After studying Investment and Finance in Property at Reading University, he carved out a role for himself in project management at Drivers Jonas, which took him as far as Dubai. In 2013, he co-founded Hush, his first business...
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Ep 15 | Building a Legacy in Real Estate with Colin Becker
London Construction + Offices Podcast
In this episode, we sit down with Colin Becker; a seasoned real estate professional who has spent nearly three decades at Metrus, helping shape it into one of London’s leading property advisory firms. Colin shares his journey from a sports-loving teenager to becoming a shareholder in a company that now manages over £6 billion in assets. Colin reflects on his early influences, including the strong family tradition in real estate and the values instilled by his parents — his father’s advice to forge his own path and his mother’s emphasis on the power of human relationships. With a...
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Ep 12 | From Thirdway to Anomaly: redefining architecture with Liam Spencer
London Construction + Offices Podcast
In this episode, I sit down with Liam Spencer, co-founder of Anomaly, who takes us on his journey as a thoughtful and academic child with no burning desire to become an architect, to co-founding a thriving architectural practice with Petr Esposito. Initially interested in medicine, Liam's curiosity for architecture grew during his studies at Edinburgh and Westminster, where he found a balance between academia and practicality. After his first role as a graduate, Liam discovered a passion for retrofitting buildings where he eventually met his business partner; Petr while working on projects...
info_outlineIn this powerful episode, we sit down with Vince Simpson, Managing Director of Spark Collective, to unpack his remarkable journey from the east coast of Scotland to leading some of the UK’s most innovative workplace strategy and project management initiatives.
Vince opens up about his childhood growing up in a single-parent household, the financial hardships his family faced, including moments of relying on food parcels and support from the Salvation Army and how early involvement in Cubs, Scouts and the Army Cadets gave him a sense of purpose and belonging. Enlisting in the army at just 15, Vince served with the Royal Engineers, including time in Sierra Leone and Africa, before leaving after a decade, burnt out but determined to forge a new path.
Vince shares how he transitioned from military life into health and safety and project management, where he cut his teeth on complex construction and fit-out projects. His career continued to build momentum at BW Interiors, Structuretone and Cushman & Wakefield, where he overcame imposter syndrome to become an Associate PM, eventually heading up the Design & Build team at CBRE.
We explore how COVID acted as a turning point for Vince, prompting deep reflection, a six-month notice period and the birth of Spark Collective. What started as Spark PM has recently rebranded, repositioning as a strategy-led collective of project managers helping clients see the bigger picture and collaborate with purpose. Now leading a lean and effective team (and not planning to grow beyond 8 people), Vince opens up about the importance of momentum, direction and energy, managing site culture and building a business rooted in values he’s lived by his whole life.
This is an honest, inspiring conversation about resilience, reinvention and finding your own spark.
I can't wait to hear your thoughts.
See you next time,
Steve
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This podcast is sponsored by Fidgens providing project and cost management services for real estate clients.
And finally, connect with me on LinkedIn where I share my thoughts on industry insights and updates.
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Guest: Vince Simpson
You can follow Vince on LinkedIn here.
Spark recognises the world is faster, more innovative and more dynamic than ever before.
We strongly believe in challenging the standard processes, placing our clients’ most common Real Estate pain points at the centre of how we approach our services.
We consciously restore the balance to high levels of services in a pragmatic, grounded and streamlined way.
We believe in being human, authentic and service-focused.