New BII chief will go back to the shop floor

The new chief executive of the BII will start the job by going back to the shop floor and working in a pub.

A replacement for outgoing chief John McNamara has been appointed and their identity is set to be revealed this week.

McNamara, who is leaving the post in January after six years in charge, said it is vital the new chief - who is not believed to have an extensive trade background - quickly gets up to speed with the industry.

He said: "When I started I did shifts in a pub and the new chief executive will do the same.

"The biggest challenge in that first 100 days is to see as many members as possible and to really get to grips with how the organisation works and the staff.

"What I think is absolutely vital, and this applies to any new job, is don't change anything until you know what you are changing.

"You have got to get to know the people and to understand the industry."

He added: "The new person has got to understand the external factors facing this industry because if our members are going through tough times so are we."

Difficulties faced by the BII became apparent last month when 18 members of staff were made redundant. The cost-saving measures were made to ensure services to members remained largely unaffected.

And McNamara said members should think twice before opting to drop training courses or their BII membership fee to make a quick saving.

"For a small outlay you get a tremendous amount in terms of help and advice. For about £40 a year you can get about £3,000 of benefits."

And he added that like the BII pubs had to adapt their businesses to be successful.

"We have been here for 27 years and we have developed and grown. We have had to change.

"The industry is very different to how it was four or five years ago, people are going to need to up their game in terms of services."