10QUESTIONS with Alistair Baines

Our 10QUESTIONS feature asks members of the Freshfield community ten questions about their working life. Featuring client partners, colleagues and FF friends, our guests share some personal stories, views and fresh words of wisdom.

Our latest guest is Alistair Baines, chairman at Freshfield client partner Cassidy + Ashton, a multi-disciplinary and award-winning practice of chartered architects, chartered building surveyors, town planners and construction advisers.

1. How do you like to start your working day?

I always start the day with a shot of caffeine sat in my favourite chair looking out at the garden and enjoying the wildlife. Those little moments of peace and quiet, I think they call it ‘mindfulness’, always get me off to a good start before taking on the day.

2. Where and how do you come up with your best ideas?

Mostly when I’m dropping off to sleep and, sadly, I can never remember them in the morning! There’s no rhyme or reason of where inspiration comes from – sometimes it can be just seeing something on TV, gazing into the garden, or even driving along that just sparks something in the grey matter.

I also get a lot of ideas and inspiration from simply listening to people talk – I think I’m quite a good listener so I will tend to soak up the information, pick out the best bits and then decide how best to apply it.

3. What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?

It came from my school days. I hated chemistry but I was fortunate enough to have a science teacher who was a great motivator and his mantra, which has resonated with me throughout my career, was to ‘work hard and play hard’. He somehow managed to get me an ‘O’ level pass (yes, we’re talking late 70s here!) but it was his encouragement on the sports field and in the gym that gave me a good foundation for life – he even got us T-shirts with the words ‘Smile, it’s only pain’ on the front. If you’re reading this Max, then cheers.

4. What does leadership mean to you?

For me, it’s about being consistent, fair and respectful and in that way there’s a good chance you will gain the same respect back. I would l like to think that colleagues view me as approachable and feel my door is always open. Transparency nurtures respect. It’s also important to show that you care for people. In a large organisation, you’re going to come across lots of different personalities and it’s vital to be able to adapt to the nuances of varying human behaviours.

I also like to think people work with me as opposed to for me and it’s important to try and create an environment where they feel empowered and confident enough to put forward ideas and challenge the status quo. It’s also about how you respond to adversity as no one can go through a long career without suffering some falls on the way – the important thing is to get back on the horse and go again.

5. What’s your top tip for achieving a work-life balance?

As far as possible I always aim to put family first. I try not to talk about work at home as family time is precious and I think it’s important to separate the two for a healthy balance. It’s not always easy, but when I do need to work from home, I disappear down the garden to my converted shed – a handy hideaway created out of necessity during the Covid pandemic.

6. Which current or historical business figure do you most admire and why?

I’ve struggled with this one and I’m possibly going to turn off a lot of other football fans here by revealing my own allegiance, but I’m going to say John Henry and Tom Werner of Fenway Sports and owners of Liverpool Football Club. They showed real determination and inspired decision making to drag Liverpool out of the doldrums and once again make them a force to be reckoned with in British, European and world football. The decision to hire Jurgen Klopp, himself a great a leader, and back him to the hilt, was inspired leadership.

7. What is your most trusted source of news?

I don’t tend to follow a specific news channel or even read the newspapers anymore. I keep up to speed with what’s happening in the world from many sources and then try to make up my own mind about who’s telling the truth.

8. What is your favourite brand and why?

Amongst brands such as Apple and, of course, Cassidy + Ashton, I would have to say Porsche, especially having designed their amazing Preston showroom. I don’t consider myself much of a petrol-head and never thought I would get the chance to own one of these wonderful cars, so I do feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to drive one on a daily basis.

9. What’s the most recent new skill you have learnt?

Earlier this year, I decided it was about time to invest in myself, so I hired a personal trainer at the local gym. I absolutely hate him (only joking Ben!) but when you get to a certain age you need to look after yourself and exercise is equally good for the mind as it is for the body. When you have a stressful career, you do need to sometimes jump off that relentless treadmill and take time to smell the flowers along the way.

In recent years, I’ve also become a big gardening fan and I take a lot of pleasure from spending time designing my garden and especially building water features. The local garden centre is like a sweet shop for me now. I spend far too much time and money there, but I have to say the greatest reward is watching the wildlife enjoying my handy work.

10. We all use them… what management jargon phrase do you use the most?

‘To think outside the box’. We’re in a highly creative industry which demands a continual push for innovation, so it’s vital to keep searching for solutions that give you an edge. And it’s not about doing things differently for the sake of it. As designers of the built environment, we have a big responsibility to get things right at a human level – after all architecture is not just about buildings, it’s about people and how we can make a difference to their lives through thoughtful design.