Meet the team – Jon Price, Principal Arboricultural Consultant

Hi Jon. We know that you are very busy so thank you for taking the time to talk to us about how you have found your first few months at Treework!

What attracted you to work for Treework?

I worked for Treework about eleven years ago then left as I had the opportunity to help run a survey project for Network Rail (where we, together with ADAS, surveyed the entire network for tree risk, on foot; all 33000km of it!)  The grounding I had before at Treework was excellent for that project; handling big data sets, approach to the tech, approach to risk, managing survey teams etc. Treework were always ahead of others when it came to these things and they really helped in assisting on such a large project.

What does your role entail?

Now, it’s learning company systems and the MyTrees GIS with integrated database as well as fitting in to working in a larger team after ten years away.  The projects are a 50/50 split between planning and development work (BS5837) and risk identification and management, whilst continuing to give clients the best advice, even when they might not even know what they want themselves.

What have you learned in your first few months at Treework?

Ten years is a long time; the systems, approach to project work and the behind-the-scenes things are far tighter, more prescriptive and professional than before, and they were tight first time around!

Is there anything different you have had to do compared to previous roles and if so, how have you adapted?

I’ve had to listen more, be more organised in filing and tracking time, emails, call records and the smaller bits of project work. Be less flippant and facetious, reign in my intemperate sense of humour sometimes.  Nothing impossible, but still a pivot in embedded habits, which is good, change is always fresh.

What have you enjoyed the most? What have you found challenging? How do you overcome it?

I have enjoyed, and still am enjoying having such a spread of people all on my phone or at the end of an email to help with the bits of arboriculture and associated business that I am not so comfortable with.  Arboriculture is a relatively ‘young’ discipline, or rather multi-discipline and everyone has had their own route into it and specialism in it when they’re there. Knowing that I can reach out to someone else on the team and get a sense or a reality check on a topic or problem that doesn’t present a solution immediately to me is really useful.  Being able to ask the daft questions and not be judged is hugely useful (and asking them of people who are too polite and well mannered to let on they’re daft questions is even better).