Business owner and CEO of Premier Communication Electronics, Karen Langley, celebrated 25 years with the company on the 11th June.
Karen joined PCE in 1995 to run the administrative, commercial and legislative aspects of the business and in 2008 she become the majority shareholder and CEO.
The business had humble beginnings, and under her leadership has grown from dealing in mobile phones and pagers, to a niche technology company that provides a wealth of wireless communication solutions to businesses throughout the UK. From providing bespoke two-way radio solutions, to installing and maintaining the blue lights and sirens to emergency service vehicles, and fitting CCTV and asset tracking to fleets, the work PCE does is unique, purposeful and has public and staff safety at its heart.
In the last 10 years, Karen has led the organisation to win a number of awards including the coveted nationwide industry FCS (Federation of Communication Services – the industry governing body for UK voice and data communications) Installer of the Year award on four separate occasions, and the Express and Echo Small Business of the Year award in 2012. In 2019 PCE was a finalist in the Business Services category at the Exeter Living Awards. Karen sits on the national Business Radio Council and the Vehicle Installer Committee at the FCS. PCE was one of the first businesses in Exeter to achieve the information security ISO:27001 accreditation.
PCE’s 15 strong engineering team are constantly training and developing their skills to keep up with the latest technologies, newest products and industry standards. Karen invests heavily in staff development and that’s why over 65% of her employees have been with the company for over five years.
As testament to her commitment to career development, in early 2018 PCE became the first approved FCS training academy for engineers specialising in installing communication and warning equipment into vehicles. Being recognised as a nationally approved training academy means PCE can aid the professional development of installation engineers.
Karen is committed to investing in local young people to provide career opportunities. PCE provide training and support for engineering apprentices, and partners with local education institutions. In 2018, it was the first time a female applied and succeeded in securing the position of installation engineering apprentice. With only 12% of the nationwide engineering workforce being female, and understanding what it’s like to forge her way in a male dominated industry, Karen was excited to welcome 17-year-old Libby Daymond, and do her bit to address the gender imbalance in the engineering and technology industries.