Leading UAE-based smart and green facilities management (FM) company Farnek has promoted Trinidad and Tobago National Ryan Mitchell to Head of Quality, Health, Safety, Environment and Wellbeing (QHSEW).
Mitchell joined Farnek in 2019 as manager of worker welfare and quality and was directing Farnek’s worker welfare policies and activities. At Expo 2020, he ensured the well-being of its onsite workforce, operating within the guidelines set by the Expo committee and several internationally renowned bodies, including the UK’s Health & Safety Executive.
Mitchell was also part of the team awarded the Gold Card Award at the Taqdeer Awards last year, recognising excellence in worker welfare and HSE.
Markus Oberlin CEO, Farnek, commented, “Ryan is the ideal candidate to head up our QHSEW division and fully deserves this promotion, epitomising our ‘Farnek First’ policy of promoting from within. He will be tasked with facilitating excellence in performance throughout our service delivery across all aspects of our business by developing, implementing and managing international best practice.
“By providing professional QHSEW leadership, he will support and advise Farnek’s project teams, employees and, wherever appropriate, Farnek’s contractors and create and maintain the metrics to improve and automate data-driven decisions, using Farnek’s in-house technology solutions, while aligning with our net zero roadmap.”
Before joining Farnek, Mitchell held a number of senior positions working on high-profile projects in the US, Caribbean and Saudi Arabia.
In 2006, Mitchell was appointed Assistant Senior Science Advisor at the US Environmental Protection Agency and a year later was appointed Environmental Specialist at Florida A&M University. Within a few short years, he was promoted to Director of Health & Safety. During his tenure, Mitchell led a dedicated team covering HSE, environmental monitoring and emergency response, as well as crisis management planning for 132 buildings across a 1.7 million square metre site, with 9,600 students and 630 members of staff. He was also a Board Director of Sustainable Tallahassee during this time.
In 2014, Mitchell joined TMCL, a major construction and industrial services contractor in Trinidad and Tobago, as Director of Operations. He managed various projects, where he initiated and facilitated HSE best practice and acted as the company HSE subject matter expert for all occupational, construction and industrial activities.
A year later, Mitchell was offered the position of Vice Chair Operations Committee & Vice Chair Tenders Committee for Lake Asphalt Trinidad Ltd, a state-owned energy company. He led an engineering and development team to research and develop a new plant design to produce a new form of petroleum derivative products for the Ministry of Energy in Trinidad and Tobago.
Mitchell arrived in Saudi Arabia in 2017 to manage the QHSEW team’s programmes at the Princess Nora University in Riyadh.
This complex site comprised over 600 buildings accommodating more than 50,000 students and 6,000 staff. Mitchell conducted site-wide risk assessments and implemented strategic improvements, streamlining the working activities and conducting training sessions for some of the 6,200 workers onsite from multiple MEP contractors.
“I am looking forward to my new responsibilities and providing strategic leadership for the QHSEW department. After our outstanding performance at Expo 2020 and the subsequent awards, it is gratifying to be given this opportunity,” said Mitchell.
Mitchell holds a Bachelor of Science honours degree from Florida A&M University and is an OSHA certified health & safety inspector. He is also skilled in ISO 9001, 14001 and 45001 auditing and a member of CIWFM, MIFMA, and FEMA. He also holds NEBOSH H&S Certification.
Mitchell co-authored a book for MIT Press about sustainability and has written research papers on climate change. Currently, he is pursuing a Master of Laws in International Commercial Law at the University of Salford in the UK.
