For every skills shortage cloud, there is a career opportunities silver lining. Tom Ravenscroft assembles 10 top tips from those in the know.
Construction is hiring. This will come as no surprise to many CIOB members who will have seen colleagues leave to pastures new and many fresh faces join their companies in the past year. The industry’s renewed optimism and stability in the market – underpinned by infrastructure projects such as High Speed 2 and, in London, Crossrail and the super-sewer, as well as long-stalled schemes such as the Pinnacle in the City of London restarting and high-value developments beginning on site across the country – is presenting many new opportunities.
Although much recent attention has concentrated on chronic skills shortages and the need to attract new talent into the market – whether school leavers through apprenticeships, encouraging those who have left the industry to return or drawing in former military personnel – it is also true that the recovery offers an array of opportunities for those already working in construction.
The buoyant jobs market allows individuals to reposition themselves to build a career in the company in the role they want. No longer is it simply enough to have a job: construction professionals are seizing the chance to find their ideal job and take more steps along their chosen career path. Employees who have been working in the same role for the past five years or more, treading water to wait out the economic downturn, are realising that now is the time to make a change.
“People who may well have been sitting tight during the recession are now putting their heads above the parapet,” explains Duncan Bullimore, building division director at recruitment consultant Hays. This sentiment is echoed by HR professionals in construction companies.
“There is a new stability in the [construction] market,” says Bill Maynard, UK recruitment and resource lead at cost and project consultancy EC Harris. “In the past it would have been a risk to change jobs. But now people – including senior people – are willing to have conversations.”
To help you get the job you want, Construction Manager has spoken to HR directors and managers, along with recruiters from across the industry to find out their top 10 tips (see below) on what they look for from an ideal candidate and how to ensure you are offering it.
As Steve Thomas, director of quantity surveying specialist Maxim Recruitment, says, “It’s sad to say, but the people who deserve the best jobs don’t always get the best jobs.”
Ambitious targets
As the UK rises out of recession, there is a rekindling of personal ambition across all sectors of the UK workforce. The Institute of Leadership and Management reports that 37% of workers plan to leave their job during 2015. This is a significant increase from the 19% who planned to move in 2014, and the 13% in 2013.
Driven by high growth and a wave of new projects that have to be staffed, construction is now a job seeker’s market.
“We are now operating very much in a candidate-driven market, with simple supply and demand pushing up salaries,” says Christian Moffatt, UK recruitment manager at Mace Group. In fact, for some roles – early-career quantity surveyors, for example – there is an acute skills shortage. One university lecturer told Construction Manager his quantity surveying graduates are “interviewing” all the top employers.
"There’s a war for talent and it’s going to be a war of attrition. It will be a long battle, and we will play the long game. We are looking to find the best candidates that will be in it for the long term."
Adam Rawlings Smith, head of talent acquisition (Europe) at Aecom
But mostly, recruiters say it would be a mistake to think that there is not serious competition for many sought-after jobs. With so many people on the move, it is not uncommon for employers to receive more than 20 applications for every position advertised. Contractor Morgan Sindall received more than 15,000 applications for the 700 places it filled in 2014 and the HR managers we spoke to report that this is not unusual.
Finding the right employee from the mass of applicants is the difficult bit points out Dawn Moore, HR director at Morgan Sindall: “We are getting lots of candidates applying for roles. The challenge for us is distinguishing the good ones.” And even with the vast number of applicants, many employers are not finding staff of the calibre they require and wait for the right candidate, even if that means leaving positions open.
“It is a competitive job market for candidates, as well as employers,” says Hays’ Bullimore. “In our experience contractors are prepared to leave positions empty rather than fill them with ‘panic buys’. Most large organisations in the sector have steady hands at the top who have seen it all before. They know how important it is to get the right people on board.”
This is certainly true at Lincoln-based contractor Simons Group. HR manager Michelle Page recalls that last month a hiring manager rejected all three applicants who were put forward for a site manager role. A renewed search is under way.
Recruitment consultants are reporting increased salaries throughout construction. John Clarkson, development director at Cobalt recruitment says he placed a graduate quantity surveyor in a £30,000-a-year position with benefits and a guaranteed bonus after six months. He adds that a thirtysomething project manager with a good CV can easily command £80,000.
There are also an increasing number of “golden hellos” and guaranteed bonuses offered to new starters, says Clarkson.
For employers, awareness of the replacement cost if an employee leaves is leading to counter-offers to retain staff. For those who have not had substantial pay rises in the recent past, or who believe they are paid below market value, this is being treated as an opportunity. A growing trend noticed by both recruitment agencies and in-house HR teams is applications submitted purely to recalibrate people’s worth, gain an offer and leverage a pay rise (see page 30).
Cobalt’s Clarkson warns against counter-offers, as, in his experience, reactionary increases in salary do not solve the core reasons an individual wants to switch jobs.
“You often see those that accept a counter-offer back on the market around six to nine months later,” he says. Trying to engineer a pay rise through the jobs market can also be a high-risk strategy, as there is no guarantee that your current employer will match the salary offered by a rival firm.
Pulling rank
Of course, new employees entering companies at higher salaries, with signing-on and guaranteed bonuses, can create tension, leading existing staff to reassess their positions. This is particularly true at larger companies, where many people may be employed at an equivalent rank and salaries may be more transparent.
Mace’s Moffatt believes balancing new and existing staff will become difficult for employers: “The biggest challenge for us is balancing candidates’ salary expectations without alienating existing staff.”
Those with the right skills are in demand and those returning to the job market have every chance of positioning themselves to find an improved role with a better salary. The competition for talent looks set to get tougher and HR teams throughout the construction industry are in for a long fight to hire and retain high-calibre staff.
“There’s a war for talent and it’s going to be a war of attrition,” states Adam Rawlings Smith, head of talent acquisition (Europe) at Aecom. “It will be a long battle, and we will play the long game. We are looking to find the best candidates that will be in it for the long term.”
Top 10 tips for building a new career
1. Be LinkedIn
LinkedIn is a growing force in construction, and an essential tool for recruiters and HR teams.
“The first thing we do when we are considering someone for a role is look at their LinkedIn profile,” says Bill Maynard, UK recruitment and resource lead at EC Harris.
“It brings to life the CV, as you can see a photo of the person and can start to build a picture of them. We look to see how complete the profile is, the most important projects they have worked on, recommendations they have received and how well they are connected.”
Recruiters recommend updating your LinkedIn profile every six months at least. And, as they increasingly find candidates on line, it is essential that you know what is on your LinkedIn account and that this does not contradict your CV.
“We do check,” says Carol White, UK head of recruitment at WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff.
2. Do your research
“I can’t stress enough how important it is to show you know the company you’re applying for,” says Jill Griffiths, personnel officer for Canary Wharf Group.
Carry out research on the company website, the internet and in industry magazines such as Construction Manager to determine the ethos of a company – in an interview this will help you to demonstrate an understanding of the business’s strategy and priorities.
Liz Anderson, HR and training manager at regional contractor Beard, suggests picking up the phone and making contact with the hiring company directly.
“Do some proper research,” she says. “Try and speak to someone inside the business.”
3. Create a clear, concise CV
You only get one chance to make a first impression and, when applying for a job, often this is through your CV. Horror stories of 12-page CVs still abound in the industry but, with such a volume of applications to distil, it is no surprise recruiters recommend a short CV.
“Remember, the CV is only being used as the first stage of the recruitment process, to allow us to select the 10-15 people a day we have the capacity to call for a qualifying interview,” says Christian Moffatt, UK recruitment manager at Mace.
Bill Munn, best practice manager at Speller Metcalfe, suggests focusing on the first words a recruiter reads: “Sell yourself in the first paragraph. Go for something that grabs people to demonstrate your communication skills and how enthusiastic you are – both things that will be required in most roles.”
4. Continuous professional development
Companies are looking for candidates that have the potential for professional growth and are keen to advance themselves.
“We are looking for employees who will grow in their roles,” says Michelle Page, HR manager at Simons Group. “If they are coming in as a project manager now, we want to assess if they will become a project director in two years.” Recruiters also look at how active candidates are within membership bodies as a measure of their ambition.
“Companies across the sector are very keen to see progression towards professional accreditations, such as CIOB, RICS and CIBSE,” says Duncan Bullimore, building division director at recruitment consultancy Hays. “This demonstrates that they are advancing in the workplace.”
5. Be proactive
Remember that nothing ever comes to you if you do nothing.
“I’m a real believer in hard work,” says Bill Maynard, UK recruitment and resource lead at EC Harris. “Candidates who are proactive will have a much greater chance of securing a role.”
If you are looking for a job, make sure you post an up-to-date CV on job sites and LinkedIn, as this can put you in direct contact with recruiters.
“I would recommend identifying half a dozen companies you want to work for and then targeting them by sending CVs. Follow this up with a phone call so you can get to know the relevant recruiters within your target organisations,” continues Maynard.
6. Make it personal
“People buy people,” says Bill Munn, best practice manager at Midlands-based contractor Speller Metcalfe. So, he suggests, it is important to build up a rapport with the interviewer by asking questions throughout the interview, rather than waiting to the end.
“Work out what you’ve got in common and ensure that your personality comes through during the first meeting,” says Jill Griffiths, personnel officer for Canary Wharf Contractors. “While a professional approach is a crucial part of any interview, it is important to connect with the interviewer on a personal level as you will – hopefully – be working with them going forward,” she continues.
7. Tailor your CV – then learn it by heart
It is essential, when applying for a position, that you have the right experience and that this is immediately apparent to anyone reading your CV.
“I would recommend tailoring your CV for every role,” says Adam Rawlings Smith, head of talent acquisition (Europe) at Aecom. “It’s amazing how many applications we get that don’t match the requirements of the role. It may sound obvious, but if you are applying for a position as a chartered surveyor, then say you are a chartered surveyor.”
Before an interview you should learn your own CV from back to front, recommends Carol White, head of recruitment at WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff: “If it states on your CV that you achieved x, y, z, then expect us to ask you to talk us through those accomplishments. We need the evidence.
8. Be specific
HR teams report that too many candidates talk generically about their experience and achievements in their CVs, so interviewers find they cannot demonstrate their level of personal contribution to a construction project.
“If it’s really your achievement, then back it up with facts and numbers and be proud of it,” suggests Dawn Moore, HR director at Morgan Sindall.
“Make sure that you can support any examples with quantifiables,” she adds. “If this can be demonstrated, in terms of either direct or indirect impact on the bottom-line financials, then even better.”
9. Think long term
Recruiter Cobalt observes that the people who get the best offers are those who have stayed with one company for many years, as businesses look to invest in staff whose track record shows they will commit long term. Job hoppers were seen by many HR managers to be a potential risk.
“If you see candidates with several short stints on their CVs – of one year or less – you do start to question why they moved and what they could have achieved in that time,” explains Dawn Moore, HR director at Morgan Sindall.
10. Be smart
Your appearance in interviews can be a factor that immediately sets you back and all the HR teams we spoke to recommend dressing smartly.
“You might be used to not wearing a suit jacket, clean shoes or a tie on site, but first impressions count and interviews are formal meetings,” advises Jill Griffiths, personnel officer at Canary Wharf Group.
