Why Tetra Tech boss believes in keeping things simple

Craig Hatch says his job is to make things simple.

However, as the leader of thousands of people working on complex environmental and infrastructure challenges for global consulting and engineering firm Tetra Tech this can be easier said than done.

“I try to have a clear focus on what the business is about,” he says.

“We do lots and lots of complex things, but essentially what we do is we deliver projects for clients, and we need a range of services and great people in order to do that.”

Major industry was a part of Craig’s family life from an early age, growing up in Leicestershire as the son of a coalminer father and a mother who worked in credit control for a large pharmaceutical company.

He left education after his A-levels to train as a surveyor and to do a job which took a little from both of their careers, working for a company which dealt with legal claims related to subsidence from mining.

“It took me into what was a big industry,” he says.

“I had a few really impressive mentors and I developed relatively quickly in what was quite a niche space. I became an expert in that area relatively quickly.”

The closure of the coal mines prompted a change in career direction, with Craig, wife Ellis and their young family moving to Cumbria where he worked as technical manager for Copeland Care and Repair, delivering work to renovate housing and facilities in the district.

Apart from a desire to be nearer to the sea after living in relatively landlocked Leicestershire, Cumbria also exerted a pull on Craig as the county where his grandfather served at RAF Silloth during the war and later as a military policeman in Carlisle, where his father started school.

“It always had a bit of a draw to me as a nice place to live as well as for the work opportunities,” he says.

In 2003 he joined project management and consultancy group WYG as a senior surveyor, which involved working as an inspector for infrastructure on the Sellafield site, as well as on regeneration projects in the area.

He rose to become regional director for Cumbria before WYG was acquired by Tetra Tech in 2019.

Following the acquisition he was asked to become managing director for Great Britain and since 2023 has held the position of Europe and UK Division president.

He is now responsible for around 6,000 employees, with the majority in the UK and Ireland but also with large teams in the Netherlands and Norway.

Headquartered in Pasadena, California, Tetra Tech has a total of around 30,000 staff working across the globe focused on providing engineering services and consulting for water, environmental and infrastructure projects.

This includes everything from designing major renewable energy projects to carrying out assessment and remediation of contaminated sites.

The part of the business which Craig is responsible for works across sectors including government, defence, transport, energy, water, building consultancy and the nuclear sector.

“We are a technical management consultancy, so we provide solutions to our clients’ complex problems. Our tagline is leading with science, so we're a business of really smart people trying to do good things,” he says.

Craig Hatch and UK-Europe leadership team at Tetra Tech annual meeting in California (Image: Tetra Tech)

Projects Tetra Tech has been involved in in Cumbria include the design of the Energus Centre, the development of Lakes College Construction Skills Centre and Cockermouth Hospital, work at Sellafield and the Low Level Waste Repository at Drigg.

Tetra Tech is also working with United Utilities on a £100m framework to improve the health of rivers across the North West as part of its Better Rivers project.

A key part of this project involves the use of smart sewer systems, which use technology such as sensors and data analytics to monitor flow rates, detect blockages, and identify pollution sources in real time.

This is alongside activities to restore wetlands and plant trees.

Wetlands can act as natural sponges, filtering pollutants and slowing water flow into rivers, while activities such as tree-planting stabilise river banks, reduce soil erosion and improve water quality.

In a company which deals with so much complexity, Craig says his role is to try and keep things as simple as possible.

“It’s about trying to lead people to support that mission,” he says.

“Our only asset really is our people. It's making sure that we provide the facilities and network and all of the surrounding environment that we need for our people to be successful so they're focused on our clients. That's what we want to be focused on every minute of every day.”

Another key quality of a leader is visibility, with Craig hosting quarterly Q&A sessions for his team, as well as updating them with monthly videos.

“It’s about being visible, being honest, being focused on what we do and making sure that our priorities are dealt with in the right way on a daily basis.”

Getting the best from people requires a flexible approach which also allows them to work in environments where they can be most productive.

“Different generations have different priorities and you definitely notice the difference from new entrants into our business,” says Craig.

“We have to make sure that we're flexible to receive and make people feel they can be the best version of themselves to do the best job that they can, wherever they come from, whatever age they are, whatever gender they are,” he says.

“There is an expectation that teams do get together in offices, but we also encourage people to work in other spaces if that is the right thing for them, whether that's working from home, meeting up in different venues, and, of course, being on our clients’ sites as well.”

As a local employer (Tetra Tech has 70 people working at its offices in Cockermouth and Whitehaven) and a member of Enterprising Cumbria’s Economic Growth Board, Craig is also focused on attracting and retaining talent in the county by making the most of the economic opportunities on the horizon.

Cumbria Economic Growth Board is the board of Enterprising Cumbria, which was formed last year to take over the functions of the former Local Enterprise Partnership.

Its remit includes publishing an economic strategy for the county, working alongside Cumberland and Westmorland and Furness councils.

Members of the board are unanimously in favour of moving forward with the process of appointing an elected mayor for Cumbria.

Craig is clear that he thinks an elected mayor is the best route forward for the county.

“The big thing is having that single voice for Cumbria going to Westminster, when we're looking for funding, when we're looking to get investment on board,” he says.

“We're a big county in terms of area, but not a big county in terms of people. So focusing down on what are the really important things for Cumbria and going for funding on that basis is going to be a key part of what the mayor's role is going to be.”

Outside of his professional responsibilities, Craig’s life is very much focused on family.

While three of his adult children, Eleanor, Ewan and Alexander have flown the nest, his son Fraser, 27, who has cerebral palsy, requires constant care.

“I'm a carer for Fraser and my wife is a full-time carer for Fraser,” says Craig.

“My main thing at the weekend is looking after Fraser and we can usually be seen going for long walks around the roads in Cockermouth.”

He is also chair of WellChild, a national charity which supports seriously ill children and their families so they can be cared for at home. This year Tetra Tech is also fundraising to support WellChild as its national charity.

For the future Craig is focused on continuing to lead a growing team.

“Tetra Tech has grown from 200 people in the UK to 6,000 since 2019 and I don’t think we’ve finished growing,” he says.

“We would like to grow a little bit more and that will include in Cumbria if we have the potential to do that and I see myself being very much part of that ongoing business in the UK.

“It was 2019 when I joined and it's probably the best thing that's happened to me in my career.”

Source: Why Tetra Tech boss believes in keeping things simple | In Cumbria