Mike's strategic leadership and commitment have earned him recognition for fostering trust-based relationships with his team and clients. His empathy and sincerity create an open, collaborative environment where team members feel valued. Mike's personal and supportive approach inspires excellence and innovation among those around him.
Since Mike’s arrival, AIS BMS has more than tripled in revenue and employs 40+ staff.
Mike graduated from the University of Hertfordshire with a BEng (hons) in Aerospace Engineering and has been working in the HVAC and controls industry for over 32 years. He has a wealth of industry knowledge, commercial skills and experience and is enthusiastic about AIS BMS delivering first class service, maintenance and energy solutions to their clients.
Mike has been Managing Director for AIS BMS since December 2014.
Prior to working with AIS BMS, Mike was at Trend Control Systems for 16 ½ years, starting as a Training Officer, and ending as the Southern Regional Director. Earlier, he began his career at JS Humidifiers, quickly progressing from a clerk to senior sales engineer and team leader.
In a service-focused business, he believes those on the front line, meeting clients daily are at the top of the organisation. These empowered team members are trusted to make decisions in the client’s best interest and are, as Mike calls them, the “Guardians of our Reputation”
Overall Impact
- 33% of service clients have stayed 10+ years; 58% for 5+ years.
- Active BCIA membership, contributing to apprenticeship programs and course development
- PFM award winners for sustainability partnerships
- Established long-term business strategy
- ISO 9001 and 14001 accredited
- Highest service contract base ever
- New appraisal system rolled out across Acorn group
- Strategy workshops held with sister company
New capabilities launched:
- Projects department
- Energy & Building Performance Centre offering savings pathways, audits, risk reports, and analytics
- Regional service teams in North, East Midlands, West Midlands, and West
- AIM Pathway
Strategic Influence
- Mike’s five-year vision includes raising leadership standards by training managers to at least level 5 in leadership and management, while coaching and expanding their capabilities preparing them for future senior roles.
- Innovation Opportunity:
- Mike actively seeks innovation to differentiate AIS BMS. For example, he developed the Operational Risk Reporting tool—an industry-first that helps clients understand performance and mitigate operational risks. This involved mobilising his team and collaborating with coders to bring the idea to life.
- Mike’s influence extends far beyond tactical business growth—his leadership has delivered lasting, strategic change within AIS BMS and the wider FM sector.
Mike has created a lasting blueprint for strategic growth, not only within AIS BMS but across the group and wider FM profession. Making him a leader whose impact is felt far beyond his own business.
“Working with my team is a delight, my role is to look to find ways to inspire and catalyse their thinking and empowering their output. Growing their imagination, asking what could be possible and working out how to get there. As we are looking to dynamically grow under the stewardship of Synova, this is an exciting process, something simple to start with like “where can you imagine getting to in 3 or 5 years, double it – how possible is that? What could we do to get there?”
While this sounds dramatic, I then work with my team to distil the imagination and ideas into real achievable steps, grouped together to become business initiatives, huddled into one strategy. Sometimes inspirational thinking leads to the most obvious steps you may have never thought of taking. I then build that into a wider briefing document and pitch the vision and our plans to garner buy in and support. The process is entirely inclusive, our team must be a core part of building the vision, in doing so the ownership, drive to succeed and the desire to achieve are palpable. We all have true purpose, shared direction and a common goal, we become unstoppable!
I was particularly proud at our recent National Conference, where I could stand back and watch the AIS Senior Management Team present the challenge 25 strategy – their strategy – to the wider company, they did so with such passion, such excitement that the room was really buzzing… fantastic!
This is their company and their success, I am here to act as a catalyst for outstanding people to shine.
I love what I do and I’m amazed my colleagues have nominated me, I am stunned, what an honour!” – Mike Witchell Managing Director for AIS BMS