Jack Jones Wins G4C Future Leader Award

Our Commercial Manager Jack Jones has been named G4C Future Leader at the Constructing Excellence in Wales Awards 2026, recognising the best young professionals working in the Welsh built environment.

It caps a remarkable journey. Jack joined R&M Williams as a trainee quantity surveyor two days after leaving school, having spotted an opportunity through Jobs Growth Wales. Thirteen years on, he is the youngest Commercial Manager in the company’s history, managing a team of ten surveyors and trainees with project responsibilities totalling £22.5m a year.

“It was a tough category with tough competition,” Jack said. “I was up against people from much larger companies, including architects, and contractors don’t always get seen in the same league. So to hear my name read out meant a lot.”

The award recognises young professionals who show strong leadership, drive change and make a positive impact on their peers, their organisation and the wider industry. For Jack, it reflects the part of the job he values most.

“I’ve worked on some challenging projects and I’m always looking for new ways of working, but a big part of my role now is managing junior members of the team. Winning this feels like a reward for helping others develop.”

Jack’s proudest moments include two listed building projects delivered early in his career: the restoration of the hangar annexes at Pembroke Dock and the Grade II listed Palace Theatre in Swansea. Both were technically demanding, with significant unforeseen works, and both were delivered on time against revised programmes while keeping client relationships strong.

“The biggest challenge in this job is having difficult conversations with clients about unforeseen work. Keeping their trust is key. That means managing relationships properly, being open in your communication and showing you’re doing your best.”

At Pembroke Dock, Jack worked to a contractually binding local spend target, achieving 77% of supply chain spend within 50 miles of site. He has carried those lessons into current projects, and his commitment to developing others runs through everything he does. He is currently mentoring three trainee surveyors, has helped one mentee reach the shortlist for the Swansea Bay Apprenticeship Awards, and regularly hosts ‘day in the life of a quantity surveyor’ workshops for students from UWTSD and Swansea University.

Asked what good leadership looks like, Jack keeps it simple. “It’s about pushing people to do things outside their comfort zone. Get them to figure things out themselves, and if they hit a problem, they know they can come to me and I’ll point them in the right direction.”

His advice for anyone starting out in construction is just as direct. “Expose yourself to as many areas of the industry as you can. I’ve been lucky to work across maintenance, new build and heritage at R&M. Don’t shut yourself off to one side of the business. Understand how the whole thing works. There’s so much opportunity and so many different roles in this industry.”

Jack is currently working towards RICS accreditation, funded by the business, and is focused on what comes next for his team.

“We’ve got a very young team, with a lot of staff nearing completion of their courses. I’m looking forward to helping them take the next step and develop their own careers.”

Congratulations Jack, from everyone at R&M Williams.