Interview: Martin McCourt, Dyson chief executive

Published on Friday 12 November 2010 21:14

CONTRARY to popular assumption, Dyson chief executive Martin McCourt doesn't get too rankled by the H-word. The chore is still commonly called "hoovering" in the UK, but millions of consumers today are buying his company's vacuum cleaners to do it, and that's what counts.

"It does not wind us up," McCourt says when asked about the irony of being headquartered in the only place in the world where the Hoover brand name has been sucked into common usage.

"These things happen in language. It is just one of our little British idiosyncrasies."

His charitable dismissal of the generic perhaps reflects the soaring fortunes of Dyson, which sells hundreds of millions of pounds worth of machines into 50 countries around the world.

Despite the recession, profits are surging, which in turn has allowed the company to embark on a hiring spree to further expand its growing range of futuristic high-performance appliances.

McCourt's role in shaping Dyson into a modern icon of British innovation landed him the Orange Leader of the Year prize at last week's National Business Awards, one of the two headline accolades handed out at the London event.

He says he is "obviously" delighted, particularly as the other finalists included the formidable business personalities of online fashion retailer Asos's founder, Nick Robertson, Chrysalis chief executive Jeremy Lascelles, National Trust director general Dame Fiona Reynolds and Ken McMeiken, chief executive of Greggs the bakers.

However, McCourt emphasises that the award is as much a recognition of the team as it is of his personal achievements.

"There are 2,725 people who work for us around the world," he says. "I might be the leader, but I am absolutely nowhere without them."

One of "them", of course, is the man who started it all 30 years ago when he famously ripped the bag from his sluggish vacuum cleaner and replaced it with a cardboard cyclone.

Officially, Sir James Dyson now holds the title of chief engineer within his own company, having stepped down as chairman earlier this year.

McCourt says there is a natural and comfortable division between his role and that of the billionaire founder, though the two work "hand in glove" on selecting and bringing forward the innovations dreamt up by the hundreds of engineers employed at Dyson's Malmesbury headquarters in Wiltshire.

"James has always been much more comfortable in a laboratory or down on the workshop floor than he is in a boardroom," McCourt says. "That is where he naturally feels at home."

Glasgow-bred McCourt remembers exactly when his "adventure" with Dyson began in 1996, about three years after the first DC01 vacuum rolled off the production line."When I came to the Malmesbury headquarters to meet James, it was amazing - absolutely amazing. The place literally buzzes and bristles with excitement.

"James is very sharp, very inspirational and extremely dedicated, but I have to say, I did think he was a bit crazy when I first met him."

Even so, McCourt gave up his post as UK general manager of Pelikan, the German manufacturer famous for its fountain pens, to join Dyson's upstart industrial operation. His initial role was that of group commercial director, which culminated in his appointment as chief executive in 2001.

Since then, Dyson has evolved from a manufacturer of vacuum cleaners into a technology-driven innovator of sometimes startling products such as its bladeless Air Multiplier desk fan. Other hits include the Air Blade - which McCourt describes as the "first electric hand-drier that actually dries your hands" - plus numerous new variations of its vacuum.

One common feature of the products to date has been their relatively mundane status prior to overhaul by Dyson. Through the launch of its own versions - even the discontinued dual drum washing machine - Dyson turned each of these products into topics of conversation.

"It speaks volumes, doesn't it? When we are presented with an alternative way of doing something that is unquestioningly superior to the current option, then it will become a talking point," McCourt says. "We get a bit excited about it."

Earlier this year, Dyson reported a doubling in operating profits to 190 million for 2009, as turnover rose 23 per cent to 770m. During that period, the company spent 42m on research and development, with that figure set to rise to about 50m in the current year.

The company is also half-way through a recruitment drive that will double its UK engineering workforce to some 700. McCourt says this should lead to a proportional increase in the number of new products coming to the market, as Dyson works to build up its development pipeline.

New products will include not just domestic appliances, but also business-to-business applications.

McCourt says Dyson is also looking to break into new markets such as South America, India and China.

"It is great that we are in 50 countries - that is definitely a step up from the one we were in when I met James - but there are other areas and regions where we would like to expand."BACKGROUND:

Raised in Glasgow, Martin McCourt finished school with the aim of becoming a cartographer. He left Scotland to train in military mapping with the MoD at Feltham in London before switching into sales and taking up a job with confectioner Mars at the age of 20.

Thereafter he held a number of roles with various firms, including general manager for the audio visual division of Toshiba, and UK national sales manager for Duracell. He also served four years as managing director of Marcus Bohn Associates, the Hertfordshire-based sales and marketing consultancy.

Prior to joining Dyson, McCourt spent two years as international director and UK general manager for Pelikan, the German manufacturer of writing, office and art equipment.