Fuelling communities and liberating those within them, Global Guardians Management envisions a world where there are no unloved buildings, no people without a place to call their own, and no community with empty, neglected spaces. Working towards this aim, the brand strives to embody honesty and compassion, helping people to both secure and optimise vacant properties. With the company’s Stuart Woolgar being named as the Most Influential CEO 2025 – Vacant Property Security (UK), we take a deep dive into the man behind this leading vacant property protection company.

Leveraging an exceptional approach that strikes a perfect balance between technology and humanity, Global Guardians Management is forever changing property guardianship – the process where a person lives in an empty building for a low cost in order to protect it – going one step beyond the industry norm to shatter stigmas and fuel community growth. The company is wholly passionate about nurturing heartfelt relationships with customers, affording them the opportunity to not only as live as property guardians, but to thrive. 

Standing out in the industry as a result of the courage it brings to the table, the resilience and freedom it affords, and its people-led ethos, Global Guardians Management lives its aims day in and day out – with the whole organisation working tirelessly to raise the bar in the field of property guardianship. Integral to this ongoing success is CEO Stuart Woolgar, whose duties at the helm include being responsible for the wider brand, driving its culture, and maintaining the industry-leading results that its reputation rests on. 

With his action-first philosophy to boot – doing something is always better than doing nothing and waiting for the right moment is a fruitless exercise because it does not exist – Stuart has taken Global Guardians Management to great heights since setting up the brand more than a decade ago. Alongside Stuart’s success there have also been failures – but he knows failure is not something to shy away from, recognising its necessity in driving innovation on an ongoing basis. 

Even from a young age, taking risks is something Stuart has never been afraid of, and he has made a career out of pushing himself beyond his comfort zone. A lover of technology from a young age, a strong educational background – culminating in the study of philosophy, politics, and economics at university – and a natural entrepreneurial streak combined to result in Stuart quickly learning both the power of persuasion and community impact, knowledge that has stayed with him and guided his career. 

Holding many different jobs upon graduating, Stuart diverted from his initial plan of becoming a software developer and learnt all about property management software from a European company he previously worked with. Analysing that organisation’s systems before using them to create two separate and successful businesses within it, the processes Stuart learnt were then used in the founding of Global Guardians Management. 

“I founded Global Guardians on the best systems and processes I had created as an entrepreneur at my previous job. Over time I learnt how to build up a company from scratch through a lot of hard and smart work.” 

Today, the internal culture at Global Guardians Management is one of the most important factors in driving its success, with Stuart basing it off Patrick Lencioni’s Ideal Team Player concept. A highly driven culture geared towards self-starters, nobody is carried and everyone is accountable. As Stuart explains: “A strong culture is one that can be questioned by the people in it, otherwise it is an echo chamber performing no worthwhile function.”

A culture of this efficiency has proven invaluable in seeing the company through the sector-based challenges it is currently facing, with these ranging from the knock-on effect lockdowns have had on the property market to overcoming the stigma and prejudices associated with people who have lower incomes. In facing these challenges, Stuart and his team aim to enact change one community at a time, paving the way for a better society with projects like raising funds for social housing and working with homeless charities. 

Despite being overlooked for the work it does and pushed to the fringes of the property world, Global Guardians Management is making a real difference, and its services should be being utilised by more vacant property owners. Stuart Woolgar hopes that this award will help his company to be seen for the credible, community-focused operation that it is. Those who wish to know more about its work can follow the link below to its website.