By Rob Gilbert, MD of Commercial and Infrastructure, Totalmobile
You’ll regularly see stories in the news across the UK about local authorities facing millions in street works fines for overruns and poor reinstatement. Buried in many of them is a telling detail: some contractors now set aside up to 4% of turnover just to cover penalties. That’s seven figures gone before you’ve lifted a shovel.
When I read that, I didn’t see an enforcement story. I saw an operational readiness story. And I thought – if this is how we plan work, we’re burning money and trust every day.
The gap we’re not talking about
In plain terms, operational readiness is the ability for everyone in the business – from a lone field worker to the CEO – to get exactly the information they need, when they need it, and in a form they can act on. Not next week. Not in a report you can’t open on your phone. Now.
That sounds obvious. But too often, the reality is different.
Field staff can’t access workflows offline. Managers rely on guesswork to know where contracts stand. Back office teams run key processes on spreadsheets nobody else can see.
Every spreadsheet you rely on is a signal: your business doesn’t have the visibility, control, or reliability it needs to be truly ready. And if you’re preparing for an exit or reinvestment, the people looking under the bonnet will spot that instantly.
Readiness starts beyond the boardroom
A lot of readiness planning happens at the top. But in my experience, you only succeed if you take it beyond the boardroom and engage with the people who actually do the work. That means field operatives, field managers, schedulers, planners, and contract managers.
It’s not a one-off workshop. It’s an honest, ongoing conversation. Create forums where people can tell you, without fear, what’s actually happening. I sometimes call it a “truth amnesty” — a space where frontline staff can say, “We’re still doing this off-system” or “That workflow’s wrong” without worrying about the consequences.
Without that, you’ll never see the real picture. And without the real picture, your “readiness” is just theatre.
Why balance matters
Becoming operationally ready is a journey. You can’t do it overnight, and you can’t do it without change. But change carries risk — especially in sectors where a lot of critical knowledge lives in people’s heads. Push too hard without bringing those knowledge-holders with you, and they might walk, taking that know-how to a competitor.
That’s why balance matters. Balance between speed and stability. Between automation and human judgment. Between the carrot and the stick.
And you’ve got to be realistic. Whatever you think the transformation will cost or how long it will take, it will cost more and take longer.
The street works example
Let’s go back to street works. In one conversation, a contractor told me they keep millions in reserve for fines – not because they don’t care, but because they don’t have the real-time control to avoid them. Jobs overrun. Permits lapse. Signs stay up longer than they should. This is exactly the type of breaches that are now facing higher penalties, from £5,000 per month to £10,000 in persistent cases and daily lane-rental charges.
If the right people had the right data at the right time, from the field worker reinstating the road to the exec overseeing the contract, that reserve could be cut dramatically. That’s operational readiness in action: reducing risk, protecting margins, and improving service.
My advice? Start.
One of the biggest mistakes is waiting for the perfect time to get your organisation ready. It’s like saying you’ll start running once you’re fit. You have to start.
Start by creating the forums. Have the honest conversations. Map where you are now, warts and all, against where you need to be. Work back from there.
You won’t fix everything in one go. But you’ll be moving, and movement is where readiness begins.
Read next: Why clarity and consistency are crucial as the future homes standard approaches – Build in Digital
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