SME News - Managing Director of the Year Awards 2024/ 20 Most Innovative Security Solutions MD 2024 (East of England): Aaron Stephens DSSL Group Ltd is an integrated security systems provider for a number of diverse industries operating throughout the UK. First launched back in 1998 by Founder Dave Stephens, the past few years have seen his eldest son, Aaron, step into the role of Managing Director of what is now DSSL Group. Today, the company provides its state-of-theart systems to the likes of local authorities, the education sector, theme parks, and pharmaceutical companies, and is renowned for its bespoke designs and a fully tailored and planned maintenance service that covers all areas of a client’s system and repairs. DSSL Group in the East of England is a renowned security systems integrator with a particular speciality when it comes to providing security solutions for local authorities and housing associations. Over the past few years, the company has been responsible for upgrading the CCTV systems of more than 20 town centres across its region and beyond, this in addition to its attending to more than 6,000 callouts in one recent 12-month period. Things do not end there, and other notable projects include the team fitting an upgraded CCTV system for SAW: The Ride at Thorpe Park. This extensive portfolio of past and ongoing projects has only been made possible by the sheer amount of exemplary systems that the team here produce and fit, from the aforementioned CCTV and video surveillance equipment through to door entry systems and access control, automatic gates and barriers, wireless network infrastructure, and even command/control room technology. Thanks to these tried and tested solutions, as well as the team of experts that fit and manage them, DSSL Group has crafted a well-deserved reputation for excellence. Whatever the project, there is a real emphasis within the company of executing it sustainably, and offsetting the carbon emissions that it produces is one of DSSL Group’s primary aims. Most recently, this can be seen in its dedication to purchasing only hybrid or electric vehicles for its fleet, something that the business has been doing consistently now since back in 2022. With DSSL Group working across the East of England in the likes of Bedfordshire, and even as far south as London, a sustainable fleet is necessary with so much travelling being done. This constant journeying is representative of just how much the business has grown over recent years, particularly since award-winning MD Aaron Stephens took on this role in 2021, after four years working as DSSL Group’s Works Director. Sitting atop more than a decade of industry experience, Aaron’s day-to-day responsibilities include leading everything from operations and sales through to overseeing the company’s wider strategy and developing lasting relationships with stakeholders, all areas in which he excels. Leveraging an unbridled passion for his work, a commitment to delivering quality service, and a desire to attain total customer satisfaction, Aaron is spearheading those all-important campaigns that result in DSSL Group pioneering innovative and reliable designs that exceed the needs of its clients at every turn. Beyond simply this sense of drive, Aaron also possesses all of the relevant accreditations, experience, and qualifications, as well as shining when it comes to leadership skills and motivating his loyal and dedicated employees. On the back of this innate skill, it is no surprise that family is the defining characteristic of DSSL Group, as alongside Founder Dave Stephens and his son, MD Aaron, Aaron’s two brothers also sit on the group’s board of directors, as well as working within the company’s engineering department. Impressively, this family-oriented ethos does not stop here, as there is a real family feel running throughout the entire business, something that extends to all members of staff and permeates through to DSSL Group’s clients. The result of this is quite simply that everyone who is a part of this brand is a welcome member of its family. Moreover, across DSSL Group, there is a chief emphasis placed on young people, as these individuals are the very future of industry. This may seem like a strikingly obvious observation, but in a landscape where young people are forced to scratch and claw their way into often lacklustre job opportunities, it is refreshing to see a company that holds true stake in the next generation. As for how it achieves this promise, DSSL Group is responsible for putting in place robust apprenticeship schemes across the sectors and areas in which it works. The end goal with these programmes is to provide residents with the opportunity for a strong career in a service that will benefit their local community whilst also fortifying public safety, an objective further achieved through the business running its own in-house training scheme for staff members, the DSSL Academy. These training opportunities highlight the company’s dedication to its staff, and by providing them with the tools that they need to do their job to the standard expected of them by clients, the company is, in turn, making the region safer. Such constant learning and development manifests itself in other ways too, with DSSL Group recently increasing its presence in the online sphere, showcasing to its customers and others in this space the things it gets up to by sharing videos of its operation. So far, these have taken the form of insights into the specific work that this team do, like carrying out a reactive repair contract. Through a visual medium such as this, prospective clients can experience exactly what “I am proud to be at the forefront of DSSL Group, a company that values integrity, excellence, and customer focus.”
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjQyNzgzNA==