Adam Walker's Blog

Emotional Intelligence - How it makes the difference in Business

2011-11-06T17:43:00.000-08:00

Simply put emotional intelligence is 'knowing how you and others feel and, more importantly, what to do about it'. If you are emotionally intelligent you are aware of which emotions you and other feel, why they are felt and what actions and results could and should eventuate. If you are emotionally challenged then you cannot makes these links and are probably what we call in business - a loose canon. If you are stressed, you look stressed, and exude stress, and thus stress out everyone else around you.

In leadership, and success in business, emotional awareness is what makes the difference. I won't bore you with the statistics, but in various studies on this topic organizations were asked to name their star performers and in each case the defining factor contributing to their success was high levels of EI - as we will refer to it from now on.

So what are some traits of EI and how are they manifested in successful business people. Here are a few:

1. Self awareness - they have a strong and accurate self assessment and self confidence. They are aware of their values and their clarity of self enables them to communicate their vision with conviction. People buy into this authenticity and are drawn to it. They live by their values and don't change them. Strong leaders have this quality.

2. Self Knowledge - they know their strengths and weaknesses and don't mind others knowing this. They have a sense of humor about themselves, are constantly keen to learn and don't mind asking for help. They don't waste others time trying to massage their ego by trying to do something they can't.

3. Channel Emotions - they can monitor their own feelings and stress levels within the strain of modern life and are able to channel these emotions for positive effect in themselves and those around them. This trait gives a person presence and is extremely important in leaders. They can control their facial expressions to show excitement when necessary, or maintain a constant emotion when needed, regardless of what is stirring inside. Star perfumers can change their emotions in a moment. Business people with this trait spread a positive vibe and are able to lift a team in the face of adversity. They are able to keep disruptive emotions and impulses under control.

4. No Narcissistic Pre Judgements -they don't react to situations based on a story, usually negative, that they have created about themselves. They are confident in their abilities to deal with life as it arrives before them and they assess each situation on it's merits. They don't make business personal and see it for what it is - just business. Not a vehicle to flesh out their insecurities.

5. High Level of Social Awareness - they are very attuned to other people's perspectives, backgrounds and cultures. They are good listeners and think before they speak. In fact they are economical with words and don't feel the need to have to fill silences with talk. Meetings with these people are productive and focussed. They are flexible in adapting to changing situations and overcoming obstacles.

6. Can Confront - they are able to confront unethical or unacceptable behavior. This does not mean that they are particularly comfortable with this, but they do it due to their high moral stance and their conviction that standards are important. The ability to confront, in a calm and reasoned fashion, is a lacking trait in current times and certainly in the upcoming generation. Successful business people will never command respect without this personal stand.

7. Empathetic - they are sensitive to others emotions, understand their perspectives and take an active interest in their concerns. They realise that we live in a complicated world and that peoples' circumstances are very different and need accommodating. They understand that in business one size does not fit all and that progressive companies maintain flexibility with their workforce. They also understand that one management technique does not work on everyone. They understand that they are managing humans and not robots.

8. Sense of Service - they understand the importance of the customer as well as their team and teammates. They give more than they receive and they understand that this 'imbalance' will pay dividends in the long run in a more productive workforce and a positive work atmosphere.

These are not all the traits of EI business people and leaders. Many more can be found within websites and books and I have listed a few here.

Read: 'New Leaders' by Daniel Goleman and 'Working with Emotional Intelligence' by the same author.

Visit:

http://www.eiskills.com/

http://www.eiconsortium.org/

I would like to finish with a couple of quotes on Emotionally Intelligent Leadership.

Napoleon - Leaders are dealers of hope.

Daniel Goleman - Gifted leadership occurs when heart and head - feeling and thought - meet. These are the two winds that allow a leader to soar.

Graphology – Handwriting Analysis is an Adrenaline Shot to the hiring process.

2011-08-12T11:21:00.000-07:00

At Conduit Recruitment we don’t hire anyone unless we have put them through a Graphology Test. So we must be fairly confident in this psychometric testing method. Through Graphology we are looking for personality traits such as tenacity, influencing skills, organisational abilities, intelligence, emotional maturity and focus.

But what is Graphology? It is the recognised and credible science of providing psychological profiles by analysing a person’s handwriting. The police and the FBI use it to profile and hunt criminals. The chance that one persons handwriting will be the same as another is one in several billion. Even if we lose use of our hands we will still continue to write in the same manner with another part of our anatomy !! Neuroscientists have correlated certain neuro-muscular movements with observable personality traits. Each trait is recognisable by a distinctive brain pattern. When writing, these movements occur unconsciously. Handwriting analysts, or graphologists, then identify these strokes and reveal the corresponding personality trait through their assessment.

So what can someone’s handwriting reveal about them? The scope is wide and diverse and includes maturity, intelligence, creativity, stamina, illness, depression, humour, adaptability, stress sensitivity and many many more. The list is endless. When we ask our graphologist questions about a particular potential staff member there is nothing she cannot answer. Mind you we do use a very good one.

So does this mean that we rely solely on the graphology test. Absolutely not? It is used in conjunction with interviews, reference checks and behavioural questioning. Put them all together and you have an excellent process of reducing the risk of making an inappropriate hire – which, lets face it, is always costly. The results from a graphology test can be used to delve more deeply into potential weaknesses. For example, if someone’s handwriting revealed that they were lacking in stamina, this would trigger questions to referees about the candidates production rate, focus and desire to work overtime. It is basically like an adrenaline shot to the hiring process!

So why do we prefer this psychometric test to more conventional methods? The main reasons are:

1. Quicker – there are no lengthy reports that need to be read and deciphered. The results are clear, direct and unambiguous.

2. It cannot be manipulated – experienced applicants can learn how to answer psychometric tests to provide positive results. Graphology cannot be manipulated – even if you deliberately changed your handwriting for the test, wrote in capitals or wrote with the other hand.

3. Deeper – it covers issues such as illness, stress management, depression, integrity, honesty, illness etc which cannot be tested for in other tests.

4. Continued support – the graphologist is always available post hire to advise on how to maximise someone’s potential, keep them motivated and retain them.

5. Easily tailored to a specific job description targeting core competencies and personality traits of interest.

6. Establishes cultural fit within a team – so important for team cohesiveness.

7. Can establish main motivational drivers – if you know what motivates and drives someone they can be more easily managed.

We have some amazing stories that attest to the accuracy of this method. For example we sent some handwriting to our graphologist by fax for a potential new receptionist. Remember the graphologist does not meet the candidates. She came back with the results that included the concern that the person may have a particular disease like Lupus. It turns out the candidate had Lupus. This didn’t stop us hiring the person but it just demonstrates the power of the process. What psychometric test could do that? I could go on for hours about many many more stories like that. It provides a fingerprint to someone’s personality.

If you want to upgrade your hiring process then I strongly recommend you look more closely at this proven method. You will be amazed. If you want more details then please feel free to contact me.

Introduction Fee or Service Fee - Our Changing Industry

2011-05-23T01:36:00.000-07:00

As recruiters you may be experiencing instances when certain clients are not accepting (or won't pay a fee for) particular candidates due to the fact that they 'already have them on their data base'. We recently had a case where a fee was rejected because the candidate apparently applied direct 5 1/2 months ago! The candidate did not tell us about this as he could not remember it as it was so long ago !!! Ross Clennett in his blog has written two excellent articles on this subject which also stirred up a lot of comments from other concerned recruiters. Have a look at them here: http://alturl.com/67f83

I am not surprised this is happening - especially in very candidate short markets. In the boom times companies have spent millions in recruitment fees and no wonder they have now appointed in house teams or RPOs to try and save some expense.

However the situation can become tricky when the client does not feel obliged to have to prove the direct introduction of the candidate. Or what about a situation where the internal recruiter has a linked in connection with the candidate? Or what about the RPO recruiters who say they will not send candidate details to their colleagues working in other companies - but will they refer linked in connections? Who owns the candidate?

I think it is very very clear that the industry is changing and that clients are now building their own talent lists. I think we will soon see recruiters terms of business changing to more service fee agreements rather than introduction fees. Otherwise institutions such as the RCSA will have to start producing some codes of practice concerning candidate ownership, time lapses and social networks. It will be interesting to see how it all pans out............

The Lost Art of Listening

2010-11-05T23:01:00.000-07:00

This article published in Dec 2010 Issue of Building Economist in Australia published by the Australian Institute of Quantity Surveyors

The next time you are in a meeting have a notice of how many times someone cuts across the talk of someone else. See how many times someone actually gets to finish what they were saying before someone else starts talking. You may have already noticed that some meetings are just a fight to be heard. You may also notice how some comments are not really relevant to the previous comments and are rather just whatever that person wanted to say and was waiting to get a turn! Its as if we have lost the capability to listen to each other and then make a considered reply based on what had been said. Meetings like this can fail to achieve the result that was intended which was propbably to resolve an issue or generate some ideas. Probably all that happens is that some people get to say how much they know about a certain topic and thus massage their self worth for a bit.

So the biggest crime here is that we don’t listen. By this I mean actually stop talking and stop thinking about what we want to say next and actually really concentrate on what the other person is saying. It takes self control but the benefits are huge. Here are a few benefits of listening:

1. In a calm environment where people feel they are being listened to - ideas are generated. We are little creators waiting to happen and we need room.

2. By listening more you hear more points of view and can therefore make better judgement decisions

3. You will be able to pick up on feelings, intent and body language which can be lost if you are just trying to push your point of view.

4. You will gain respect from the people you are listening to – people like to feel appreciated and be recognised and by listening intently you are projecting respect for them and what they are saying. Basically you will be liked more!

5. People will open up more and feel free to express themselves – in a creative environment this is exactly what you are looking for.

6. Misunderstandings are avoided and reduced as clear communication channels are created

7. Listening creates a feeling of goodwill in professional relationships. Improve your relationships by listening non-judgmentally to the concerns and problems of others. The more you listen without judgment, the more freedom speakers have to find their own solutions to problems.

8. Meetings will have a calmer vibe about them, people will relax and open up and more will be achieved.

9. You will feel more relaxed and therefore live longer !! – big statement I know but its probably true.

10. A collaborative environment conducive to positive thinking is produced.

Unfortunately in a world that promotes an environment where its ‘all about me’ the desire to listen can be stifled at times. But expressing our wants, feelings, thoughts and opinions clearly and effectively is only half of the communication process needed for interpersonal effectiveness. The other half is listening and understanding what others communicate to us. The benefits are clear.

As Larry Nadig says :- "We were given two ears but only one mouth, because listening is twice as hard as talking."

Happy listening.

By Adam Walker – Director at Conduit Recruitment (www.conduitgroup.com.au)

What future for recruiting?

2009-12-10T18:42:00.000-08:00

In his guest blog post on 'The Savage Truth' on 8 December, UK-based recruiter Bill Boorman wrote:

For a while now I've been changing my views on the future of recruiting. I have a feeling that the market is going to look quite different once we have shaken off the shackles of recession. I didn't always think this way, but over the last year I have been building a fantastic network via social media channels. My network consists of an eclectic mix of HR professionals, Recruiters, Vendors, technologists and others that live around the talent area globally. This combined input which has come via twitter, my 3 radio shows on blog talk radio, various blogs, linked in, latterly the wave and other channels have led me to these conclusions. This is how I see recruiting evolving over the next 3 years in a nutshell.

1.0
Corporate companies that have looked to cut cost during tough times will continue to do so in the boom times. I see this taking over much of the generalist market with HR teams taking on much of the lower end recruiting and traditional recruiters retreating further in to specialist niches where they can show real expertise.

2.0
The upshot of this will be more generalist recruiters opting for a very low cost option based on the job boards. The latest figures out of Australia demonstrate that the post and pray method still dominates the sector. This was very much the standard delivery model during the boom years post 94, where speed was valued ahead of quality of service to either the candidates or the clients. I don't blame recruiters for this; both the clients and candidates drove the market this way by creating intense competition for limited resource. Post recession, the corporate recruiters have wised up to this and realised that they might as well do this themselves at a greatly reduced cost. Those recruiters that are unable or unwilling to change what they have always done have increasingly resorted to low fee or flat fee charging relying on volume. I believe this model combined with direct recruiting will dominate this end of the market.

3.0
Recruiters will continue to find new ways of offering the same service. Packaged and priced differently. An over populated market means more need to change their offering to differentiate. Over the last months I've seen models that pay large bounties for referrals from the network, that charge a fee based on time spent regardless of result or volume of recruiting, recruiters who have switched to providing a managed consultancy service charging for outputs in work over hourly charges and even Aquent have moved to a purely exclusive or retained basis, changing the way they interact with clients in the process. I applaud this creativity but equally believe it will change the recruiting landscape. Essentially the job we do will be the same, but we will package it very differently.

4.0
Recruiters will continue not to get social media. Despite the outraged posturing of the many bloggers and commentators this is actually o.k. I say this because the majority of the global population are much the same. Forget the stats you see, if you conduct a poll on LinkedIn asking how many recruiters have recruited via LinkedIn, unsurprisingly the results look favourably on the channel from where the opinion was elicited. Rather controversially I also believe that those recruiters that don't get it won't disappear. Personally I'm rather glad not many do, because it leaves the field open and unpolluted for those of us that understand the best way to network. The volume of recruiters that do nothing in LinkedIn groups other than posting jobs demonstrates the risk of damage to recruiter's reputation as a whole by not contributing.

5.0
Relationships between clients and candidates will become the currency of the market. Increasingly, wise recruiters will return to managing fewer candidates that they understand properly (as a result of interview over registration) will change the way candidates choose who they want to represent them. Candidates in skill short markets will know they hold the balance of power and will be looking for real partners in their job search over those that do little for them. Equally, clients will choose to work with fewer recruiters and will expect regular contact, feedback and help. They will also look to their suppliers to be subject experts that can advise and help rather than purely process.

These are my thoughts for the coming year. I'd love to hear if you disagree! Be ambassadors for the business!

From the Horse’s Mouth

2009-11-30T15:19:00.000-08:00

Adam Walker (AW) of Conduit Recruitment talks to Nick Neeks (ND) of WT Partnership, Sydney about some important issues that face the QS industry today.You can read this transcript or watch the actual videos below.

AW: Today we are talking to Nick Deeks who is a Director at WT Partnership in Sydney. I’m going to ask Nick some questions on issues that effect QS’s in the industry today. A big question that Ddirectors are always talking about is the quality of candidates that come out of universities and courses and their basic abilities as Quantity Surveyors, for example measurement skills. Nick, who is going to do all the measurement when nobody knows how to measure anymore?

ND: Well that’s a very good question. Whether the measurements are still going to be needed, I think is part of the problem, as well with lack of measurement training and education in universities. Also the fact that measurement is done in a different way now. It is being taught in a different way. You’ve got Cost-X, you’ve got on-screen take off systems, architects have got building information management in BMI Systems. So students aren’t taught how you and I were taught when we were in university - how to do it, with a scale rule, with a piece of paper and actually measure. That is one of the issues we find when people come out of university. Universities are applying to us to teach people how to measure and we have to send them away on a separate course !!! They want the employer to be training students in how to measure. The university course doesn’t actually teach the same measurement anymore.

AW: So are you saying the universities are not teaching people how to measure in a way that industry needs it?

ND: The subject matter of the university course doesn’t have the measurement content that it used to have. When I did my degree, there was Measurement 1, 2, 3, 4 etc. There was measurement every semester, every year. Now I think measurement takes up one semester of one year and that’s it. There’s hardly any measurement training any more.

AW: So you need people to be able to measure in a certain way, but the university course is not teaching them how to do that.

ND: No, they are not teaching them how to do it full stop, not even in a certain way, because the course has become amalgamated into a Project Manager, Construction Manager, Development Management course. It all becomes as one. It becomes a construction management degree. So the QS component is only one component of the degree, whereas the degree used to be a degree in Quantity Surveying.
AW: Yes, a big issue indeed. As far as solutions to that, and maybe solutions can come from institutions like the AIQS and the RICS, what do you think are the main goals or should be the main goals and focuses of institutions like the AIQS and the RICS today?

ND: Well the AIQS do run a course once every year- a long weekend or a 4 day course of intensive measurement. I think this year the RICS have joined with the AIQS to produce that course. As far as what the institutions should be doing, they should be promoting Quantity Surveying in the universities and in the schools, which is the subject we have been talking about for years, of trying to get people into the profession and trying to promote the whole profession. It is not as well known here as it is in the UK. When we have sat on the committee before with the RICS, we have talked about them going into schools and talking to students then. Once they’re in the universities it’s generally too late. They’ve already decided what they’re doing. They’re already on a course. So its getting earlier and earlier and the RICS do have those “meet and greet” evenings with students, which maybe they may not be as successful as they used to be. Its difficult tying to get people to come along. Maybe there is a sense of apathy from students that don’t want to attend. Maybe they just don't know in the first place.

AW: On that, would you recommend a career in quantity surveying to your children?

ND: Well having just damned the whole thing, actually I would. I would say it is a good career. I was at the University of NSW several months ago giving a presentation to some first year students on this subject and talking about overall Quantity Surveying and just the interest factor in it . It is a good, solid, well-respected profession and there is always something to learn. It keeps you on your toes and it’s something you’re never going to get totally bored of. You may get bored of the particular subject matter of the industry that you work in - it may be commercial, it may be residential - but that just ebbs and flows depending on the government stimulus, as an example at the moment. Most don’t want to work on residential or schools, but you just have to go where the market is. But it’s a long term profession. You can get a good grounding, there’s a good career path there, and you can travel the world. It’s a qualification that you can take you anywhere in the world.

AW: Is the QS service provided in Australia different to that provided in the UK?

ND: I think it is different but I have been here for 15 years, so I can’t talk about the services provided in the UK at the moment. However I think the role here in Australia is a lot more pre-contract.

AW: What does that mean?

ND: A lot more cost planning. All of the smarts and intellectual input is provided getting the project up and running and getting the project up to appointment of a contract. The post contract period generally is not quite so important as involved as the pre contract. In the UK its different, I was just chatting with a couple of guys last week and their experience was nearly all post contract. So there are obviously bigger jobs, more involvement on a post contract role, and people would be out on site. These guys have worked 4 or 5 years on terminal 5 and all they have done is contract letting and variations and post contract work - never been anywhere near a cost plan. In Australia its quite different – in the UK they have an in depth post contract role, whereas the post contract involvement here is not so in-depth.

AW: But what would you also say about even before the cost planning starts? I think about when I used to be a QS in the UK and the QS’s used to get involved with the appointment of other consultants etc.

ND: Oh certainly. I think the position of the QS in the overall design team is different here. You used to be the first point of contact for the client. So you were the lead consultant. You would be involved in procurement and appointment of the architect and the engineers and the design team and you were the clients’ representative in a lot of ways. We get that with some of our clients- some of them worldwide clients, some of them from Asia, prefer us to be the main contact point. But generally it’s the Project Manager. It used to be the Architect, probably now more so the Project Manager. The QS just gets pulled in depending on how strong the Project Manager is and what he’s trying to achieve. But more often that not, you’re brought in to try and mop up the cost issues or resolve a problem as apposed to provide the smarts before we get a problem.

AW: When I used to be a QS in Australia, a value engineering exercise or a value engineering workshop was often just cost cutting exercise beacause a project had gone over budget.

ND: Yes, you don’t have them so much now. You have them with RTA projects, government projects will still go through that role, but generally value engineering is a cost cutting exercise. It’s probably a mis-term. They call it value engineering, but where is the engineering? Its just value. Value reduction!

AW: Exactly. But that sort of stuff should be done at the beginning surely when you’ve got a sketch design.

ND: As long as some detailed and rigorous cost planning is done and options are looked at, then you shouldn’t get to the point of needing to do value engineering.

AW: OK. You’re an expert at building services and infrastructure. Just on the building services side, in Australia, when will building services costs be subject to the same cost planning rigor as building structure and fabric costs?

ND: I don’t know that it ever will. I’ve been here for nearly 15 years and in the UK engineering services was a major component of any QS role. QS firms would always offer engineering services and they were a fee earning service. I came here with the objective of trying to raise that profile. It’s a role that engineers undertake. It’s a value role and its one that we do and its not one that many QS firms actually provide. But it becomes more of an add on or an added value. And now it’s nearly 15 years and it hasn’t ever become so rigorous as structures or architectural cost planning. Clients like it, but I’m not sure that engineers are totally accepting of a QS taking that component of their service away from them.

AW: But do engineers have detailed estimates or is it mainly just a cost plan rate based on the last similar job they did?

ND: Oh most of the jobs are just cost plan rates. We just did a job and there’s tens of millions of dollars in engineered services in there and the consultant had a rate per square meter for mechanical and that was it. This was on primitive design and we worked our way through the various stages of estimates and there was nothing there. It was just a rate and there was nothing behind it.

AW: So if you have a $50 million job, and $25 million of that is services, and you were talking about doing cost plan analyses of various options, and let’s say you can save 10%, why wouldn’t you do that to the services?

ND: Well you should do that. It’s just that there aren’t that many engineering services QS’s in Australia and its hard to try and promote it as a fee earning service on its own. It becomes an extra service. So you can put a submission in and offer engineering services as an extra. You’re not necessarily getting any more fees from it.

AW: It just seems odd. Why don’t the clients see value in inspecting the engineering services?

ND: I’m sure they do see the value but they don’t want to pay for it. They don’t like to pay for the extra service. So we have engineering services QS’s at WT Partnersip
and they are full time employed. We service every office in Australia out of our Sydney office. In our Hong Kong office we have a team of 10 engineering guys up there, but it’s more of a UK model up in Asia.

AW: When you are interviewing a prospective QS for your business, what do you look for?

ND: If it’s a face to face interview, first impressions count for so much. Presentation and communication skills - because the role of the QS is very client facing. We want everyone to be in the initial stages, in the pre-contract stage working with the client. They have to attend more meetings. As well as having a solid ground in quantity surveying and reasonable education, they need to be presentable. They need to be able to write a decent report and put themselves across. So presentation has got to be one of the major factors. A solid education is the second. And experience.

AW: It sounds like you need experience in cost planning though?

ND: Experience in cost planning for us is definitely essential but it doesn’t matter if they haven’t done it necessarily in Australia, because it’s a transportable skill that you can take anywhere. That just becomes understanding rates and pricing, but the principles are to be able to put a cost plan together.

AW: How do you think climate change will affect the QS service that you deliver to your clients in the future?

ND: Well that’s a good question. We’ve just recently had our AGM and I had to put a paper together on carbon and ESD and carbon trading. I don’t doubt that there’s going to be a change in the service that’s provided. The more that the clients become aware of the emission trading scheme or pollution reduction schemes, of monitoring their energy usage and the green house emissions, then there’s a role there for a QS. The RICS has produced the best practice paper on managing carbon management of real estate. It’s not clear where there is a definite role for a QS. There is a role for a surveyor somewhere in the whole picture. We are currently exploring those possibilities and looking at where it is but we still need to get the emission trading scheme through Parliament. Its going to be people like big shopping centre owners and they become first order point of obligation, which then they are legally bound to do an emission reduction and someone needs to monitor that. Someone needs to calculate the embodied carbon energy in each building, which we need to offset over a period of 10 or 15 years of operating life, of what that cost is. It comes into the whole ESD, with trigeneration, black water, recycling. They all become issues that we have to become aware of not just the initial cost, but the ongoing cost and maintenance and life cycle.

AW: If part of measuring a building’s carbon footprint has to do with how much energy it took to make the materials etc then surely a QS is going to be the only one who can quantify it?

ND: There are parts of it that a QS can do, and parts that a QS can’t do. It becomes very technical. I was speaking to a guy in New Zealand a couple of weeks ago about it and they were talking about a project in Auckland and they were going to get the materials from Wellington but it actually ended up on the life cycle as a carbon calculation, cheaper to bring it over from Perth. The capital cost was obviously more, but the ongoing cost of the embodied energy was less because of the way the manufacturing process of the material in Perth produced less carbon than the manufacturing process in Wellington. From Wellington to Auckland is relatively close; from Perth to Auckland is a huge distance. But it picks up all things- its fuel, its transportation.

AW: But surely QS’s are pretty much in the box seat to run that and manage that and be able to work it out and put it on paper and present it.

ND: I think the QS would need to work hand in hand with some other suitably qualified people. There are certain things that QS’s can do and you are putting statements in front of clients about potential costs over an 8-10 year period and you are making a definitive statement. There are liability issues involved. There are certain components of it that a QS can do but to be honest I haven’t really got to the bottom of it. The RICS is looking at it and it’s at the forefront of everyone’s mind but we haven’t pinpointed exactly where it’s at. But there is something there so it’s something we have all got to be aware of. The more you read about it, the more it’s just an issue that everyone’s going to be across.

The Skill Shortage to end all Skill Shortages !!

2009-09-07T20:52:00.000-07:00

In my last article I discussed the job market in Australia and abroad as it stands for employees. In this article I will discuss the current situation for employers looking for candidates to fill vacant positions.

So before the credit crisis we had a deep skill shortage in the field of Quantity Surveyors, Estimators and Contract Administrators etc. Has that changed based on the fact that there should be more candidates on the market due to redundancies? Well not really if you are looking at Australian candidates. Very few good ozzy candidates have been let go and when they do become available they are snapped up very quickly. Astute companies have recognised that now is the time to procure talent and have used the downturn to pick up candidates that would not normally be available. A great strategy that will leave the stronger companies stronger and the weak weaker.

However if you are looking at employing offshore candidates from say the UK or Ireland then you should have no problem picking up the travelling candidates that are currently looking for contract work. There is always a steady stream of Irish backpacking QSs arriving at Sydney airport and the good ones are excellent at measuring and cost planning. However you may also need to employ and interpreter as you will not be able to understand a word they are saying!

But there is a big problem looming. After the crash of the late 80s lots of construction professionals left the industry to persue alternative careers. This produced a skill shortage that was also fueled by a weaking education system and a waning draw card for industry entrants. Result – the skill shortage that we now have. So if it is bad now – what is it going to be like when the market starts to pick up again? I think we will be staring at the mother of all skill shortages in the QS profession. A recent article in a Queensland newspaper noted that graduate QSs were not provided with the adequate skills to cope with the current property market (see our website : http://www.conduitgroup.com.au/stories/professional/news/QS_courses_skill_shortage.php) So there are no new graduates, current students are not trained properly and existing QSs will leave the industry to follow different career paths. An emptying pool an all accounts! Wow – with this sort of doom and gloom reporting I should be working for the Government or the media!

So how are companies going to find staff in the very near future when the market starts firing again. Well, here are a few suggestions:

Start hiring now – as suggested above the current climate can produce some top performers that have been let go through no fault of their own – snap them up
Start an Academy – you can no longer rely on the educational facilities to train Quantity Surveyors. Companies will have to take on board some of this responsibility by setting up training centres. Sponsorships could be put in place to attract the best performers from the Universities and TAFE and then carry on the educational process at work. Get known at all the relevant educational institutions and get hold of the best students. You’ve got to grow your own.
Create a Strong Brand – get the candidates to come to you based on your reputation in the market place and your presence in the media. People are attracted to bright lights as well as moths.
Try out some travellers on contract and ensure the best candidates stay. Help them with visas and be nice to their girlfriends! There are some really excellent candidates in the UK at present who are looking for any excuse to move to Australia. Plus there are quite a few Australians in the UK looking to return. I know it can sometimes be a dissappointing process employimg offshore candidates but very soon it will be the only option again. Local QSs don’t grow in the garden!
Outsource time consuming processes like BOQ production to free up surveyors for more high level functions. Using BOQ shops in Sri Lanka and India is becoming more and more popular and makes a lot of sense as long as the product is guaranteed.
Attend career expos and events and try and spot some bright young sparks that you can feed into the entry level of your organisation. Look for the right attitude and then train them up. Keep them loyal to your company with incentive schemes that benefit both the employer and the employee.

So with the right processes in place employers can make sure that they are not constantly scrabbling around for the right candidates at the last minute. The smart approach is to breed your next level of seniors and management level QSs. The skill shortage will only get worse and there is no solution on the table as yet. Good luck and I’ll see you out there in the market place.

Written by Adam Walker – Director at Conduit Recruitment.

The State of Play - The current job market for QSs in Australia and Abroad

2009-05-30T20:08:00.000-07:00

This article was written for the 2nd issue of the AIQSs Building Economist for 2009

One of the duties of a recruitment consultant is to provide honest and relevant advice to candidates and clients. We are at the forefront of the job market on a daily basis talking to job seekers, clients of all kinds, industry bodies, forecasters, job boards and the media. We know what’s happening.

The main thrust of this article is to provide advice to the Australian QS whether they are at home or abroad as to the status of the job market in Australia or abroad – mainly the UK, UAE and Asia. It is focussed towards the employee rather than the employer – the latter will be the focus of the article in the next issue.

In Australia the usual employers of QSs, Estimators, CAs, Commercial Managers and Contracts Managers have seen their market chopped off at the knees. Confidence is low and credit is in short supply. Don’t get me started as to whether this state of affairs is a good thing or a bad thing, or whether we should have seen it coming, or when it will end, or if it will be the same next time around or ................. whatever – it’s here! Lots of consultants, developers and builders have recruitment freezes on and the others are being very cautious before taking on any new staff.
However it has become very evident that there is STILL a skill shortage in Australia for quality construction professionals. There was never enough to go round in the first place and not that many quality people have been let go. Employers are only letting good staff go if there is no other option – it took them so long to find them in the first place that they would only retrench them is absolutely necessary. For instance I have 3 Estimator positions vacant at the moment and no appropriate candidates have shown up yet. If the crash of the early 90s caused a skill shortage in construction what is the next busy period going to be like?

However there are still jobs going. Where are they?

Government work – the nation building stimulus work has already created positions and this will only increase. Billions of dollars have to be spent in areas such as schools and housing in a very short period of time, and QSs will be needed to control the spending. Government agencies, consultants and builders who have won this work will very quickly need commercial staff – some are already taking on extra resources in this area.

Infrastructure – if you want to become in demand then get some infrastructure experience such as roads, bridges, ports etc. Google the recent federal budget forecasted spending program and all will become clear.

Defence – the DOD does not necessarily employ QSs but the industries that supply them certainly do, such as builders and consultants that service that sector.

Claims – in the good times claims are sometimes put on the back burner. However when the economy tanks and people have more time to chase old money the requirement for claims experts increases. Both builders and claims specialist consultants are in need of QSs with experience in preparing claims, defending claims and expert witness capabilities.

Estimating – if you are a good estimator with commercial awareness and experience across the various procurement options then you are still very much in demand. There are currently a number of large builders and developers looking for estimators across Australia. Experience in civil works as well as large projects is always attractive.

So what about offshore? Well the UK is a basket case! Many QSs have been laid off and every week you hear of major firms retrenching another tranche of surveyors. Things have got so bad now that QSs are forming support groups so they can meet up and discuss their plans and lick their wounds. If you were thinking of moving to the UK – I would put that plan on hold for at least 6 months.

And what about Dubai – or the Middle East in general. Well Dubai is bankrupt and was bailed out by Abu Dhabi. Professionals are leaving the emirate in droves and there are classic stories of people abandoning car loans and rental leases and just jumping on planes and leaving their problems behind them. The airport car park is awash with abandoned cars! The party is over for a while in Dubai – how long for – probably not that long and when oil prices go back up the market should get back on track. Abu Dhabi has survived in better shape, and so it should, as it’s the main backer of Dubai and has all the oil. However consultancies and builders are still in wind down mode and if you were thinking of a move over to the desert I would leave it at least 3 months. You should also think about the recent offshore tax implications of the recent budget as this will certainly affect your decision if money is your impetus.

Asia will always be a power house and although our clients in Hong Kong are not urgently recruiting at present there will always be a need for a quality commercial QS that part of the world. There are a massive amount of infrastructure projects planned in HK over the next few years which should provide a very busy work platform. It will take a few more months for the dust to settle over there but a career move to Hong Kong is always a good option in my opinion.

So in summary if you are a QS in Australia you will have faired much better than most in other parts of the world. Whether the recent bounce in the stock market actually is the precursor to a recovery is too early to tell and many people will give you many different scenarios. But if you are an experienced QS with good credentials then your future should be pretty secure in the short and long term. Although there are fewer vacant positions across Australia than there were 12 months ago – they are still there and in slightly different areas…… so adapdability is also a required trait. Salaries are lower too but that correction is probably long overdue as wages were getting a little out of hand! $60k per annum for a student was just silly!

Next issue we will address the status for employers – watch this space.

2009 construction forecast: can it weather the economic downturn?

2009-01-19T16:33:00.000-08:00

It’s all over the news that business and consumer confidence is low and that Australia and other Western economies are heading for tough times. Money is tight, many business sales are falling and company directors are wondering whether their business will survive the downturn.

The spectre of job losses is looming across the general economy as the financial jitters spread out across numerous industries including the Quantity Surveying and Construction sectors.

Construction has been following a steady path during the past decade with continual single digit growth in output. The rises have not been as spectacular as other sectors, but the flipside is that it is predicted that the fallout from the current economic troubles will be nowhere near as severe. However, it is clear that this sector like many others is not immune from the crunch.

The private building sectors have been the hardest hit with many banks developing cold feet and becoming more cautious in funding new projects. Private infrastructure spending is still rising, but apart from that, things are gloomy, which shows how important public spending is.

Alastair McMichael, a Director of Rider Levett Bucknall agrees that the private infrastructure sector has been impacted significantly with “numerous projects put on hold or cancelled due to the shockwaves that are travelling through the Quantity Surveying and Commercial Construction sectors.”

McMichael’s predicts that their workload in the New Year could potentially be “substantially reduced and we will be looking into new opportunities as internal resources become more available.”

Rachel Callaway, National Research Manager of Davis Langdon explains despite the doom and gloom, on a “global level we have seen a lot of former expats returning to Australia as they are no longer required in international jobs. Therefore we are seeing a higher calibre of candidates in our industry.”

“This time last year everyone was screaming skills shortage, now the tables have turned dramatically. Economically, it will take awhile for the situation to turn however the government’s quick act to inject money into the infrastructure sector will help.”

It is evident that the outlook for the construction industry is somewhat cloudy with revenue expected to increase by only 4% in 2009-10 and just 2% in 2010-11. Although, despite this somewhat disappointing prediction, there is still hope with it forecasted that there will be nearly 90,000 construction workers needed every year between now and 2012.

A Director of a National Infrastructure Organisation says “despite the obvious slow down, we won’t be changing our area of focus too much during 2009. If we were purely a building company we would notice a more substantial slow down but because we are well diversified we will have enough to keep us going.”

“The current economic climate will see project funding becoming much harder to secure and will probably never revert to that of the past few years. You will need to have a fundamentally secured project to receive funding, including excellent fundamentals, and larger equity invested with less debt. 2009 will start off very flat and probably wont get up and running until the first half of 2010 where more stimuli will come back into the economy.”

A Project Manager of a National Construction Company agrees that “You currently have to look at projects in cycles as a job we start now won't be finished for nearly two years and the economic climate might be different by then. Everyone knows there is a shortage of housing as the demand is there, the problem is affordability and finance.”

“We are still expanding as a company because the work is still coming through. If residential wobbles a bit then we are looking at other areas such as hotel construction, which is booming. All our skills are transferable between the two, so you just have to adapt when things get a little tighter.”

Director of Conduit Recruitment Adam Walker says that recruitment in the construction sector has also been hit by the downturn. “We have found that most of our clients are either laying people off or have established a recruitment freeze.”

“As far as recruitment in construction is concerned, what we are finding is that there are a lack of vacant positions but also a lack of candidates as the quality candidates have not been let go. Smart companies are using this time to attract candidates who may not have been available in busier times.”

Conduit Recruitment Construction Consultant Greg Ford agrees that “there is an enormous amount of uncertainty in the sector. We are finding that many of our clients have had projects cease or be put on hold, but for some construction companies it is a question of adapting and moving into other areas where work is still ongoing.”

“The beginning of 2009 has seen many of our clients madly tendering with predictions that it will be quiet for most of 2009. We have found that many of our clients have switched their focus from placing permanent roles to contract.”

As for the overall prediction of what 2009 will bring, the building sector will suffer as long as private development has all but stopped. Building will most probably stagnate, infrastructure remuneration might continue to move upwards but it won’t increase at the rate it has in the past.

Alastair McMichael says that during 2009 they will be “sitting tight and keeping our existing team together.”

Adam Walker agrees that there is a lot of “wait and see for clients in the construction and infrastructure sector, although the search for hard to find specialist skilled workers such as client estimators has not ceased.”

“In terms of the skills shortage, there will always be a skills shortage in the construction and quantity surveying space. Although there are presently fewer jobs available because of the climate, when things start to pick up the shortage will not have disappeared.”

The economic downturn has caused a construction slump as these leading construction professionals have revealed, and although there is a vast array of prediction and opinion, the general consensus seems to be that we will have ‘to wait and see’.

Is it all Doom and Gloom? - An Interview with an Executive Chairman

2009-01-14T16:23:00.000-08:00

It’s all over the news that business and consumer confidence is low and that Australia and other Western economies are heading for tough times. Money is tight, many business sales are falling and company directors are wondering what the outlook looks like for 2009.

We interviewed an Executive Chairman from a National Infrastructure Organisation to grasp an idea of how the current economic climate has affected the construction sector and what they foresee for 2009.

How has the current economic climate affected your Industry in Australia, and workload in general?
Yes we have been affected, private building is very weak but government building projects remain strong. In mining, top tier miners are still spending (albeit reduced) but second tier miners have stopped expansion. There is still a lot of money being spent in rail; the government sector in particular is very strong. Gas is also a strong industry with there being a number of schemes for liquefied natural gas in Western Australia, Queensland and Darwin. Other areas are going strong such as water treatment plants, recycling and the pipelines.

In regards to the areas of construction that you specialises in which areas have you found to be hit the hardest, and why?
The private building sector has been the hardest hit, which is made up of residential and commercial projects. The reason is finance related with banks changing both their cost of funds and their lending criteria to developers.

Where will you now be shifting your focus or what do you foresee as becoming your main area of interest?
We won’t change our focus too much; if we were purely a builder we would slow down, but because we are well diversified we will have enough to keep us going.

Do you think that the current economic climate will have a lasting effect on the construction industry and what do you foresee as being some of the long term ramifications for the industry as a whole, if any?
Project funding will become much harder to secure and will probably never revert to that of the past few years. You will need to have an fundamentally secured project to receive funding, meaning excellent fundamentals, high degree of pre sales and larger equity invested with less debt.. 2009 will start off very flat and probably wont get up and running until the first half of 2010 where more stimuli will come back into the economy.

In the Construction and Property sectors, salaries are considered considerably good, do you see them changing, staying the same or increasing? Why is this?
Building will most probably stagnate, infrastructure remuneration might continue to move upwards but it won’t increase at the rate it has in the past.

With the current state of the market, have you found that Gen Y employees are concerned or worried about their jobs?
This generation has never experienced a recession before. Many employers have been biding their time through the boom times and will now look to show the Gen Y’s that the boot is on the other foot. We are not like that. We love the vibrancy and diversity of the contribution from Gen Y’ers.

Do you still envisage a skill shortage in Australia, calling for offshore candidates or will you now focus more/only on local talent?
Research shows that by 2018 there will be more people leaving construction than entering into it. We must continue training and bringing on graduates – this is a critical part of our business model. We also appreciate the importance of continuing hiring graduates cadets and apprentices.

What are your predictions of your immediate workload moving into 2009?
We expect to remain slow to steady in 2009 – certainly slower than 2008.. In general, the building sector will suffer as private development has all but stopped. State and Federal governments are being responsible by investing heavily into infrastructure – the trick will be just how quickly they are able to get these projects off the ground.

Careers in the Middle East - Special Report

2008-11-16T16:50:00.000-08:00

In the Weekend Australian newspaper Conduit Recruitment are featured in the Careers in the Middle East Special Report. I was interviewed by journalist Mark Eggleton about the current job market in Dubai and where the market is headed during this economic downturn.

Bulls, bears and what’s looming over the horizon

IT’S the big question for Aussie jobseekers thinking of making the leap to the Middle East: is it still booming or is it heading for bust?
It probably all depends on who you talk to, and what industry they’re in when it comes to discussing the effects of the global downturn on the Middle East job market.

On a bullish note, the managing director of human resources specialists, EFI International, in the Middle East, Dr Francine Pinnuck suggests the good times are set to roll on.
Sitting in her Dubai office, she remarks: ‘‘ There are so many cranes on the skyline, that it’s difficult to count them. I can see 20 at a glance in just one direction.

‘‘ The world has never seen anything like the scope of development happening here at present. It’s a massive boom and while the downturn may come, I would expect it to be short.’’
Conversely, Adam Walker, a director at Conduit Recruitment, paints a rather less rosy picture with at least one large property developer putting a freeze on international recruitment.
‘‘ We have even had a few offers of employment withdrawn,’’ Mr Walker says.
Conduit specialise in the property recruitment market and, according to Mr Walker, the picture isn’t rosy right across the Middle East.

He suggests the downturn could be deep, especially with capital drying up and oil prices flattening.
‘‘ Dubai could especially be effected as it does not have a lot of oil and much of its development is debt-funded,’’ Mr Walker says, ‘‘ and just like everywhere else, they’re finding it hard to find money at present.
‘‘ You look at the big local developers such as DAMAC and they’re already retrenching people and have put in place a freeze on recruitment.’’

Mr Walker says job opportunities could also dry up due to circumstances not associated with the Middle East.
‘‘ There are a lot of British companies based in the region, and rather than offer redundancies to staff in the UK as the downturn bites there, they may just transfer staff to the Middle East,’’ Mr Walker says.
On the plus side, Mr Walker says the trough may not be deep. He suggests the situation may change over the next six to 12 months. ‘‘ The big infrastructure projects are still slated to go ahead, so there should be opportunities opening up there,’’ he says.
He says the price of oil will no doubt rise and much of the United Arab Emirates will recover relatively quickly, although he’s not so sure about Dubai.
‘‘ The Dubai property bubble may soon burst,’’ he says. ‘‘ At present, it’s a real false economy with investors paying high prices for big returns.
‘‘ It doesn’t sound like a problem, but half of the apartments are empty because investors just lock them up at completion and wait for the market to rise. It doesn’t make sense to rent them out.

‘‘ On the other hand, rents are high because there’s not much stock on the rental market even though there’s an oversupply.’’
Dr Pinnuck is well aware of the overheated rental market as she recently signed a lease on a two-bedroom apartment requiring a $60,000 downpayment upfront. To her, the high price is merely a reflection of the robust economy in Dubai.
‘‘ In this region, it’s always blue sky; we remain optimistic,’’ she says.
At present, EFI International is working closely with the local stock exchange in Dubai and, according to Dr Pinnuck, it’s all business as usual.
‘‘ They’re really focussed at present and have a good board in place,’’ she says.

The company are also working with the ruling family on a number of initiatives designed to help local companies structure their businesses more effectively.
‘‘ Working throughout this region is such a satisfying experience,’’ she says.
‘‘ Sure, it’s hot and we work long hours, but the cultural diversity and the passion of the people from all over the world, make it so rewarding.’’

Conduit’s Adam Walker agrees, it’s a rewarding place to work in more ways than one.
‘‘ With the Aussie dollar weakening, the region is looking very attractive at present,’’ he says.
‘‘ With the local Dirham currency tied to the US dollar, it’s much better than six months ago, doubly so considering that you pay no tax. The problem is that there are not a lot of jobs around at present.’’

Dubai Cityscape Conference - A Vision of Tomorrow

2008-11-05T16:19:00.000-08:00

A couple of consultants at Conduit along with myself recently attended the Dubai Cityscape Conference.

Cityscape Dubai 2008, in its 7th year, is the largest business-to-business real estate investment and development event in the world. Cityscape Dubai attracts regional and international investors, property developers, governmental and development authorities, leading architects, designers, consultants and all senior professionals involved in the property industry. It provides an annual forum that celebrates the very best in real estate, architecture, urban planning and design from around the world.

About 60,000 participants from over 150 countries had gathered in Dubai, to be a part of the world's largest development exhibition and its associated conferences, which is expected to break all previous records. About 40,000 visitors flocked the Cityscape Dubai during the first two days of the show, which exceeds a total of three days of crowd gathering during last year's event.

With the world facing market uncertainty, we enter a new era in which the Middle East developers are expected to maintain or even increase their presence across the world.The intensity and scale of the iconic projects, is one of the most impressive property booms in modern history that has kept the UAE and Dubai in particular, on focus worldwide for most of the decade.

However, a report by the property consultants Colliers International stated that Dubai prices would drop by 16 percent during second quarter of 2008, and will remain flat until 2010, which came as bad news just prior to opening of the seventh Cityscape Dubai.

On the whole, about $100bn worth of new projects were launched on the first day of Cityscape. However, this news failed to ignite investor confidence, as there were growing fears about the global credit crunch and the possible overheating of the local property market. Starting from Dh.350bn beachfront project to a kilometer-high tower, the developers at the annual Cityscape exhibition in Dubai launched the usual series of mega-developments, which has been responsible for boosting the Gulf Arab Commercial hub to international fame.

While the Dubai mortgage lender Tamweel, announced plans to launch about Dh.2bn worth of Islamic bonds in 2009, the Sorouh Real Estate of Abu Dhabi announced that all its projects have been proceeding on track.

It is evident after attending Cityscape that we began to think about whether the large scale projects exhibited at the conference will actually be built. Although the shopping malls and apartment complexes look great now, when they are completed in 10 years time they will look dated. There was alot of talk surrounding Dubai and whether places such as Abu Dhabi will in fact prdouce bigger and better developments in the years to come.

It will be interesting to see as to whether other countries in the Middle East overtake Dubai with the grandeur and large scale of their developments. One thing is for sure that the Dubai Cityscape Conference will continue to be the largest property exhibition in the world attracting tens of thousands from all over the globe.

Prepare for the Candidate Interview (It doesn't take long!)

2008-10-23T15:12:00.000-07:00

I recently read a great article written by Ross Clennett that outlines tips for Interview Preparation. Clennett's advice is below.

If we are serious about providing more than a resume-referral service to our clients, then our candidate referrals need to provide a high value-add component and interview preparation is a critical part of doing that.

Thorough preparation is essential prior to conducting interviews, to ensure that the 30 to 60 minutes we spend in an interview is time productively and effectively spent. Here's a preparation for interview list you might wish to use:

1. WHAT? Agreement with the client regarding the 4 or 5, competency-based key selection criteria.

WHY? Unless there is an agreement, you risk assessing the candidate against criteria which the client regards as marginal.

2. WHAT? Prepare behavioural interview questions that request sufficient, specific detail about a candidate's demonstrated capability in the 4 or 5, competency-based key selection criteria.

WHY? Unless you have prepared the questions, you risk asking each candidate different competency questions which makes comparing answers, to assess competency, much more problematic.

3. WHAT? Thoroughly review the resume of each candidate to be clear as to what information provided on the resume you need to validate (eg depth of current responsibilities), and what information not provided on the resume, you need to discover (eg reasons for leaving last 3 positions) during the interview.

WHY? Research on resumes would suggest that between 20% to 40% of resumes contain significant omissions or inaccuracies. It's the job of the interviewer to ensure that the resume they submit to the client is complete and accurate.

4. WHAT? Bring to the interview a copy of the job description and a relevant page or two of information about the client (from the client's website or elsewhere).

WHY? Build credibility with the candidate. What opinion of a real estate agent would you have if they didn't have a floor plan, couldn't tell you when the house was built, what the council rates were etc?

5. WHAT? Have an interview template.

WHY? Such a template greatly enhances your interview structure, ensures you list all the behavioural questions you need to ask, as well as sufficient space to write the answers to those questions .Writing everything on a candidate's resume makes it much harder, and takes a lot longer, to find the relevant information post-interview.

6. WHAT? Ask the candidate to bring in any relevant supporting paperwork (eg. referee names and contact details, originals of visas, degrees, testing etc).

WHY? Saves you chasing it up afterwards and helps you validate the candidate's bona-fides much faster.

7. WHAT? Email the candidate the details of the interview (time, date, place, parking, public transport etc) and then re-confirm by telephone within 24 to 12 hours prior to the interview.

WHY? Candidates may not write things down, may lose the paper they wrote the interview information on, may forget, may get a better sounding interview, or they can't be bothered etc etc.

8. WHAT? Book an interview room.

WHY? You look like a complete amateur if you keep the candidate waiting for an interview room or you have to interview them in an inappropriate place (eg, reception or a café).
The success, or otherwise, of most interviews is highly predictable. The first factor is the interviewer being effectively trained in interviewing and the second is the amount of preparation the interviewer does prior to the candidate arriving in reception.

The good news for you is that if the general standard of recruitment interviews is so low (as the Clicks candidate survey confirms), it doesn't take much for you to stand out from the crowd.

Part 2: How to Tackle Interview Questions

2008-10-14T15:04:00.000-07:00

4. Can you work well under pressure? This is a closed question to which you could just reply "Yes"! Even so use the opportunity to give an answer focusing on several clear-cut examples showing your ability to cope under pressure.

5. Where do you see yourself in five years time? Try not to sound overly ambitious by saying: "part of the management team or board of directors within this organisation". The interviewer will be pleased with your desire to progress but be more modest. You could express simply your desire to grow and advance within the company, possibly citing some areas of the business which currently interest you.

6. You don't seem to have achieved great results during your studies.Anytime that you have to deal with a weak element in your application, it is important to avoid being evasive or vague. Meet the question head on. For example "Yes, that is true. I know that I did not get the right balance between my extra-curricular activities and my academic work. Since then I have developed my time management skills and learned to say no to some activities. My results now show what I can achieve." If this is your second interview, you are likely to find some probing into the weaker areas which emerged at first interview.

The most important thing to remember is that you are looking for any opportunity to communicate your skills and abilities, supported by examples of what you have already achieved. Most employers are looking for graduates who are not only capable of, and committed to doing their job but who will fit the corporate culture.

How to Tackle Interview Questions

2008-10-09T21:45:00.000-07:00

The current skills shortage can work as an advantage for current graduates as you prepare for the annual recruitment drive. Knowing what to expect during an interview process can benefit graduates as you can be well prepared and show to potential employers that you are capable of filling the numerous job vacancies.

During an interview you could be asked any number of questions so you need to prepare. If you keep focused on the selection criteria for the job, you will then see that all the questions you are asked give you an opportunity to provide evidence.

So how should you tackle the questions you are asked? Here are some hints:
1. Why have you applied for this job?
This is a great chance to sell yourself but don't waste the opportunity by reciting your CV. Describe the skills you can offer which are relevant to the role and express the depth of your interest in the job. You might have developed an early interest in the field, had relevant work experience, or you may have talked to people who are in the profession. Your answer should be enthusiastic and confident and show you have done your research. Leave the interviewer in no doubt that you are the perfect person for the job.

2. What are your weaknesses?
This question usually strikes terror into the hearts of all interviewees. The best way of tackling it is to pick one thing which you know has been a weakness but you have taken some steps to overcome. For example you might say: "I used to be very nervous about giving presentations but I have taken a course and have asked for feedback from others to improve my performance. I am still nervous but now it does not show so much."

3. How do you see yourself fitting into our team?
You will need to illustrate times where you were placed in a new team or group. It doesn't matter how long or short term the role was. Show what steps you took to make sure you fitted in, show how the group was not disrupted by your arrival and, if relevant, describe any positive impact you had.

15 unwise assumptions for recruiters to make

2008-10-01T16:12:00.000-07:00

I recently read an article written by Ross Clennett that outlines "15 unwise assumptions for recruiters to make". The article outlines points that are important for recruiters to remember.

1. The client will read my brochureDo you seriously believe ANY client or prospect will read your company brochure? Most recruitment company brochures are boring, filled with motherhood statements and provide little, if any, compelling reason for the client to use that recruiter. Why would a client read it?

2. The candidate will tell me about any other offers they haveNot unless you ask them, they won't.

3. Getting on a PSA is great newsIn my experience, a vast majority of PSAs deliver rewards well below expectations to those recruiters who ‘win' a place on the agreement.

4. My calls will be returnedNot unless you gave the person you were calling a compelling reason to do so, they won't.

5. People possess common senseWhat might be ‘common sense' to an accountant might not be ‘common sense' to a salesperson.

6. The client will mention any internal candidates being considered for the roleNot unless you ask them, they won't.

7. Resumes are a complete and accurate record of a candidate's work historyAs I wrote about earlier this year in InSight 21, US private investigation and security firm, Kroll reported that 49% of requested checks on their clients' employees and prospective employees, uncovered discrepancies in the resume-stated employment history compared to what Kroll's background check revealed. Your job as a recruiter is to validate the resume of any candidate you represent to a client.

8. The client will tell me that they have listed the job with another/other recruiter(s)Some will, some won't. Make sure you find out every time you take a job brief.

9. A candidate's referee will volunteer any relevant less-than-flattering information about the candidate during the reference checkMost referees want to speak well of employees who have worked for them and won't offer any potentially negative information about the candidate unless they are asked a specific question that may reveal this information.

10. People read emails. Some do, some don't. Most people are looking to delete emails as quickly as possible, so if you are emailing important information and you don't get any acknowledgement, then follow up with a telephone call.

11. Candidates will accept a job at the salary stated/advertisedThe closer the candidate gets to the offer the more likely they are to want more money to accept the offer. Keep re-confirming the salary.

12. Candidates will notify me in advance if they are not going to be able to attend a scheduled interviewAlways create a reason to telephone a candidate same-day (or 24 hours at worst) of a scheduled interview to re-confirm the interview details.

13. Clients will ‘be reasonable' and pay my fee without having signed our terms of businessMy experience was that the amount of time it takes for a client to sign your terms is in direct proportion to how uncooperative they will be during the recruitment process.

14. Candidates will tell me if their circumstances change at work or at homeLooking for a new job is a function of many things - things that can change quickly. Touch base with candidates regularly about whether anything has impacted (negatively or positively) on their enthusiasm for a seeking a new job.

15. Other people have the same standards and values as meRecruitment can be a tremendously fulfilling and rewarding career, however, you have to be prepared to experience, forgive and get past, some very strange, rude and inexplicable behavior. Operating as an optimistic cynic (expecting the best, preparing for the worst) worked for me.

Back to Basics

2008-09-25T09:28:00.000-07:00

Recently I wrote about the current property downturn and how it was affecting recruitment in our sector. Well I'm in the UK at the moment and due to the financial crisis and the abatement of inter bank lending, the property market has slowed considerably.

I think property recruiters will now find out what the real world is like! I was talking to a recruiter from a competitor of ours and he said that their property team were now realising they have had it too easy over the last few years. A candidate driven market has now returned to a client driven market in a very very short space of time. I honestly believe that this is just what property and construction recruitment needs. Recruiters can now return to the basic tasks of sourcing positions and presening clients with a selection of relevant candidates.

Rather than clammering over the same candidates who, due to being touted by various recruiters and companies, get delusions of grandeur and think they are worth way way more than what they are. There needs to be a return to stability, its all been too mad and too many clients have been frustrated by the process. The recruitment industry has been tarnished by the madness!

We can now focus on the best candidates for our clients and get back to some basic recruiting.

Part 2: Recruiting Quantity Surveyors when there aren’t any!!

2008-09-23T15:53:00.000-07:00

By flexibility in the search for Quantity Surveyors, I mean do not limit your search to a QS who is 25-35 with excellent all round skills and local experience. This demographic makes up 15% of the total QSs worldwide and everyone wants them. They are in high demand and their salaries are escalating rapidly!

Good alternative options lie with:
a. Estimators looking for a career change and a chance to learn cost planning rather than lump sum tendering – however slightly tricky as Estimators are very well paid these days.
b. Contract Administrators who want to move away from site and persue a career path within an office environment and put a suit on! They often have excellent first hand experience on how a building goes together.
c. Construction Planners with abilities in estimation – often forms part of their role. However again the dollar factor can get in the way here as they are very well paid all over the world.
d. Building Surveyors looking for a change and a pay rise. BSs often retain estimating skills when pricing up scopes of work and have excellent technical knowledge too.
e. Carpenters who have priced work – often this skill group have excellent first principle estimating skills that can be added to. Perhaps someone who wants a steadier income.
f. Engineers who have specialised in the costing side of their specialism – often you will find the building services crowd have good first principle costing abilities. In a shrinking pool of available candidates we need to look in other pools. I think one of the biggest challenges faced by growing QS businesses these days is the sourcing of relevant staff. And not only finding them – but then keeping them!! But that’s another topic all in itself.

Happy hunting.

Recruiting Quantity Surveyors when there aren’t any!!

2008-09-18T18:01:00.000-07:00

Its not that they’re aren’t any QSs left its just that they are very hard to find when you have a vacancy. This is mainly due to a number of reasons that we are all well aware of by now including a major slow down in the market ten years ago and a drastic slowing of university entrants and graduates on relevant courses.

Most of us will also be well aware of some alarming statistics that are bantered around including one from the RICS which is either that 47% of chartered QSs are 50 and over or 50% are 47 and over. Either way it doesn’t bode well for the future – especially as 25% of the QSs are student members who unfortunately don’t seem to arrive at the work place that well equipped with basic measurement skills these days!

Anyway, enough winging, what’s the answer?. The answer is two fold, and we will look at the first answer today - "Look under every stone".

By looking under every stone I mean use every means open to you to source suitable candidates.
These include:
a. Advertising regularly on the internet with on-line job boards and institutional websites
b. Advertising in the press and relevant journals with stand out adverts that express your point of difference and the career opportunity (avoid pictures of buildings and men wearing hard hats or shaking hands!!)
c. Advertising overseas – an excellent source of strong relevant candidates – eg the UK – the poms are keen on Australia. Also Dubai – its getting hard to live there and lots of QSs are getting fed up and want to come home. Interviews can be held over the phone or cost effective video links through Skype. Sponsorship these days through a temporary 457 visa is a relatively easy process that employers need to embrace. Also, candidates under the age of 31 can arrive on a 417 visa and start work immediately – this will give employers a 6 month window to apply for their sponsorship if both parties want to stay together!
d. Registering with specific focussed recruitment agencies who know exactly what you want.
e. Paying a finders fee to existing staff for introducing candidates – rife in the Middle East and the UK.
f. Attending offshore Career Expos – beware as some are way better than others.

What Type of Recruiter are You?

2008-09-14T23:49:00.000-07:00

I found this great article on passive and assertive recruiters. What type of recruiter are you?

Passive recruiter (to candidate): "What time can you make it for an interview?"
Assertive recruiter: "I can meet with you at 8.00am or 12.30pm tomorrow - which suits you best?"

Client: "I am going to register this vacancy with two other agencies so I can get the best market coverage for good candidates."
Passive recruiter: "I would appreciate you giving me an opportunity to work on this role exclusively."
Assertive recruiter: "I understand why you might think that would be a good idea but let me explain to you why multi-listing a job has a greater chance of delivering a lesser calibre candidate and the process taking longer than you expect."

Client: "I don't want to interview the candidate. Please forward over some other resumes."
Passive recruiter: "okay"
Assertive recruiter: "There's no point in sending over other candidates until I understand why and where you believe this candidate is lacking. Please let me know specifically which of the candidate's technical skills, behavioural competencies or other areas you believe is not matched to your vacancy."

Client (for temp vacancy): "Send over the candidate's resume and I will come back to you with a decision about an interview."
Passive recruiter (to client): "okay"
Assertive recruiter: "I am very concerned that if I do that, this candidate will take another temp role in the interim. To prevent that happening, I am prepared to extend our normal guarantee from one day to 5 days if you accept my recommendation now. This offer demonstrates how confident I am that the candidate will be an excellent match for your temp job."

Client: "and don't send me any candidates with funny names, my customers get annoyed with people who can't speak proper English."
Passive recruiter: "er, okay"
Assertive recruiter: "you can be assured that I will only send you candidates who have the required level of verbal communication skill, regardless of their name.

An assertive recruiter knows both their candidate and client target market so well that they know when to respectfully challenge a client or candidate when an ill-considered or short-sighted decision, that is not in their best long term interest, is about to be made.
A passive recruiter doesn't challenge because they are afraid of having a robust conversation, hurting other people's feelings, or as coming across as ‘pushy'.

An assertive recruiter doesn't hear ‘no' as final, they hear ‘no' as ‘not yet' - an indication they need to make a different approach to be successful in gaining a ‘yes'.
A passive recruiter hears ‘no' as final, and they regard themselves as a failure.

An assertive recruiter makes things happen.
A passive recruiter watches things happen.

Part 2: Why must QS always be spelled out?

2008-09-11T15:44:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend, I got talking to a mate in a pub who is employed in the advertising industry. I asked how one should market a company and what was real recognition.

In reply, he suggested: “When I mention a particular product line, tell me the company that comes to mind.” So he started: “soft drinks” – and I replied “Coke”; then “supermarkets” – I answered “Tesco”; then “cigarettes” – and I said “Marlboro”. So then I said: “Well, that’s fine – but that’s because everyone uses the products and it’s in your face the whole time.” He said that was exactly correct: top-of-mind awareness.

There are construction projects on every street corner throughout the year, so how can it be that the public know nothing about them or who is involved in them? The reason is that they themselves are not involved or engaged.

Somehow the industry has to engage the public on a personal level and get them talking about construction projects and construction companies. It might be the case that we will have to resort to flashing lights and feel-good posters on every tower crane, site compound or piece of safety clothing, but the industry must do something about its level of public awareness.

Our industry has a long way to go to involve members of the public and get that knowledge out there on what we do. I am looking forward to the day when I can answer the question “What is it that you do?” with a simple “QS” and the response will be “Okay, wow – what’s happening with such-and-such a project?”

Confused about climate change and what it means for your business?

2008-09-09T23:25:00.000-07:00

Climate change is big news. A national carbon emissions trading scheme is coming, as soon as next financial year. It will impact your business and every other business you deal with. There’s talk of another world energy crisis. Your staff, too, may well be asking what the firm’s doing about carbon emissions and corporate sustainability. And perhaps your clients are starting to ask too. They talk of “greening their supply chain” and you suspect they might mean you.

Australia’s biggest companies today have teams of environmental managers and consultants planning for a carbon-constrained economy. But that may not be the right approach for your business. You might like the sound of going carbon neutral but would like someone to explain the concept, benefits and costs better.

Actually, you wonder what all of this emerging issue means for your business. Who can you turn to for advice? Who can you trust? What will it cost?

Gavin Gilchrist: Former journalist, government advisor and now business director delivering climate change solutions. Gavin Gilchrist is a regular commentator in the media on climate change and has spent the past 12 years of his professional life primarily focussed on climate change solutions for business.

Gavin is a member of the Ministerial Advisory Committee of the NSW Climate Change Fund and is on the panel of experts of the national Energy Efficiency sub-group in Canberra.

Gavin is the Managing Director of Big Switch Projects, formed in 2000 to help business deliver reduced energy use and carbon footprints through energy efficiency upgrades.

http://www.bigswitch.com.au/

Why must QS always be spelled out?

2008-09-07T16:36:00.000-07:00

Besides the credit crunch, the talk on everyone’s lips is about sustainability and implementing responsible construction practices for the benefit of future generations. But how can this be achieved if there is nobody there to do it?

Over the past few months, I have been working in a team that is continually expanding and has gone from strength to strength in its range of services – and workload.

I have noticed a similar trend in other industries, such as finance and the media, but not as much as in the building sector, where skilled cost managers are increasingly hard to find.
It seems to me that there has been an incredible demand for construction personnel, while the response in terms of growing and training the workforce has been slow.

So how do we go about attracting individuals to our industry? It could be viewed as a company’s responsibility to target other industries in the hope of attracting professionals that can be trained and moulded into construction professionals. But how do we make the industry attractive to these potential recruits – and to new graduates?

While the industry does have many attractions, these are just not being conveyed to the right individuals or being publicised strongly enough in general. Why is it that when somebody asks you what you do for a living, you have to explain yourself in detail, explicating cost management from first principles? You might as well have replied that you are an ocularist! Quantity surveying is not a commonly recognised profession.

I believe that the reason individuals are not being attracted to our industry is that the general public are not generally aware of what we do or how we do it.

Stay tuned as I continue this discussion.

The Interview - How to Identify High Performing Candidates, Part 3

2008-09-04T00:30:00.000-07:00

We are now at the conclusion of our Interview Tips on "How to Identify High Performing Candidates".

Following the basic steps that we have discussed will help you eliminate some of the risks of making wrong hiring decisions. It is not an exact science and you will never really know what a person is like until they start, but that’s why you have a probationary period.

7. If a candidate seems purely focused on the salary then make sure they are not just using the process to get a pay rise from their current employer. This can usually be spotted by them saying that the reason they are looking for a new job is because they feel they are currently underpaid! Ask them if they would stay if their current employer gave them a pay rise and pay attention to how they answer.

8. Watch out for the ‘victims’. This is where a personality conflict is the reason for leaving almost all of their jobs and their genuine accomplishments are very thin on the ground.

9. Don’t base your decision totally on technical abilities. Yes, they have to be able to perform in the role but any technical deficiencies can usually be trained and learned. However, a good work ethic and emotional maturity cannot! You need ‘can do’ people, not people who constantly say, “that’s not in my job description”!

10. Dress smart for the interview. If you are interviewing the perfect candidate you don’t want them to be put off by your appearance and then take another position elsewhere.

The Interview - How to Identify High Performing Candidates, Part 2

2008-08-31T16:03:00.000-07:00

So far we have discussed three useful interview tips to help companies recruit suitable candidates for their company.

Today we will look at three more great interview tips.

4. Have a second interview with a maximum of three different people. This will help you achieve another perspective on the candidate. For example the interview could be held in a more social environment (not a noisy pub!) to check that the candidate is a good cultural fit.

5. Always check references. If the candidate is not prepared to give recent references then beware. Also, if a candidate says that they left their last job because of a personality clash with their boss, this could be a sign that the candidate is unmanageable and uncoachable. Drill down on these responses and ask candidates specifically what they mean and what the problem was. You may notice how using the word ‘specific’ will cause the interviewee to shift in their chair. If a glance to the right follows then the whole truth may not be forthcoming!

6. Perform some sort of Psych Test. These can be very elaborate or they can be simple and quick. At Conduit Recruitment we use a handwriting analysis which is less than $250 per go. This involves a trained document profiler and psychologist examining a page of the candidates’ handwriting to test for the required competencies and any troublesome traits. It is amazingly accurate, and provides an excellent source of information about a person’s potential management capabilities and motivations. When you know what motivates a person, you will be able to get the best from them.

The Interview - How to Identify High Performing Candidates

2008-08-26T15:50:00.000-07:00

I recently wrote an article for The Building Economist on how to find potential candidates for your business. This article discussed the importance of spreading your net far and wide in finding the right candidates. It also mentioned the high cost, of both time and money, for businesses when recruiting the wrong person and having to replace them. This cost can be anywhere between $30-50k AUD.

When you have found your potential candidates you need to have a robust and meaningful interview process that enables you to ‘screen for the gold’ and pick out the talent that will fit into your office. So many companies have interview processes that do not challenge interviewees because the questions are weak and allow candidates to dodge the sticky questions. This makes it difficult for interviewers to make an informed decision about choosing the right candidate.

Over the next while I will discuss useful interview tips for companies and employers that can be implemented to prevent this.

1. Have two people in the first interview so that you obtain two points of view and ensure that these two people are competent at spotting different things. For example, have a right brain person and a left brain person.

2. Have a pre-designed, structured and measureable interview sheet prepared that can be filled out by the interviewers. This will help the interviewer to highlight the core competencies that you are seeking. For example, when interviewing candidates for a Quantity Surveying position you may have 5 sections labeled: Technical Abilities and Accuracy, Communication, Project Experience, Teamwork Abilities and Negotiation Skills. Have each section scored out of 10 and then totalled for a score out of 50.

3. Ask Behavioural Questions as part of the interview. These are questions that require the candidate to think of previous real life situations that will demonstrate a particular competency. They cannot simply state that they are great in that area, for example, “Yes I am a great negotiator”. How do you know they are?! It is difficult to be 100% sure but you can ask a question that asks them to describe a previous example. Try asking a question such as “Andrew, could you tell us about a time when you had a particularly difficult variation to negotiate and how you fared in the final result. What techniques did you use to achieve this great result for your client?” If they cannot describe a situation or their answer is weak and flaky then perhaps they are not such a great negotiator! There are loads of great books available on this type of behavioural questioning as well as a good website: www.emurse.com/blog/2007/05/21/complete-list-of-behavioral-interview-questions/

Stay tuned for more useful interview tips that will help you recruit the right candidates for your business.

Property Downturn - just what we need!

2008-07-13T01:38:00.000-07:00

This downturn in the property market is just what we construction & property recruiters need. Things have been very good for a long time and I think that breeds complacency in the recruitment market - ie the quality of the service is not maintained. The skill shortage in our sector has meant that many recruitment companies have entered the market and taken on a flick and stick method of recruitment that can sometimes bring results by luck - but ultimately gives us consultants a bad name by association.

Now that companies are not so desperate for staff we can get down to some real recruitment in a focussed and professional manner that brings a client the talent they want in an efficient yet calm and steady approach. We can now concentrate on what we do best which is searching for specific talent for specific roles via our tested methods of advertising and data base searches. The 'chancers' that the boom times have bred will not have these detailed skills and will get bored and fall away. I think this downturn will flush out the companies and recruiters that are really only in it for the quick 'sneaky fee'.

Just what we need is this downturn !!

Cash for Candidates

2008-06-15T23:50:00.000-07:00

I spotted this comment on the Short List website recently made by Ben Richardson of Turnaround Recruitment.

The recent article on Shortlist about rec-to-rec company Recruiters Choice offering a $1,000 "success bonus" to candidates it places raises plenty of ethical questions for the industry.I’ll refer to and stand by the same comments I made on Shortlist Wed 13th April 2005 (about paying candidates a fee to interview)."Any candidate attracted to run a recruitment process simply for a $1,000 enticement needn’t apply to us, as they are obviously not the quality of candidate we want to represent".Recruitment companies should be trying to attract candidates through their reputation, knowledge, professionalism and understanding of their market sector, not by making cash payments or kick backs.

I have to say I agree entirely Ben. I think there will be a shortge of good candidates for many years to come and consultants need to become market experts to source talent by reputation - not by cheap tricks. I mean what are you going to tell the client - this candidate is coming to see you because we have promised to slip him $1000. Its just short sighted and ugly. No wonder recruiters get a bad name - I mean really?!?!?

Maintaining the Troops (how to keep staff)

2008-05-31T21:05:00.000-07:00

My last article talked about how difficult it is these days to find a good QS and how you need to search every talent pool, in every location and with every method to find them. After you have spent valuable time and money finding them and inducting them to your systems and methodologies, the last thing you want is for them to leave after a short stint! It not only costs more money to replace them (amount say $20-30k) but also disrupts your business flow and general office equilibrium. No – what we need to do is to provide our employees with a vibrant, supportive and challenging work environment that will secure their services for years.
Before I go through some strategies on providing this type of robust culture lets quickly list the top five reasons why people leave companies in the first place. They are:

Their Manager – people leave to get away from someone
Their salary – underpaid and their mates in the same role are getting a better deal
Their career progression – not mapped out for them or nowhere to go
Their work environment – unstimulating and drab
Commuting hell – too much of a nightmare to get to work and back

The above points are in no particular order and surprisingly salary is somewhere at the bottom of the list in levels of importance – although I see this changing as the cost of living goes through the roof!
So how can we ensure our highly valued staff stay for the long term. Here are a few ways that may help:

Appoint appropriate and skilled managers – this is a massive topic in itself and I don’t intend to go through how we can be better managers. Managing staff is a skill that very few people have and it takes years of experience to get it right. Staff need to respect their direct reports and want to perform for them – just like a child wants to show off to his parents! Staff should be praised and encouraged and mentored. They should also be disciplined when appropriate but when this occurs it should be crystal clear to the staff member as to why its happening.
Ensure they are paid the market salary for their position – or slightly above. There are numerous salary surveys out there so there are no excuses for not knowing what the current level is. Add in other benefits like medical insurance, gym membership, bonus days off and performance bonuses tied to measurable KPI’s. All this will ensure you stand out from your competitors.
Provide a clear career road map including the measureable steps needed to advance. Employees should not be in the dark as to how they can progress and they need regular meetings with their manager to discuss how they are doing – every 6 months as a minimum. These meeting need to be fixed and not cancelled last minute because something else more important has come up – that just gives the impression that you don’t care! And this treatment should extend from the Associates to the receptionist.
Delegate as much responsibility as possible and as desired by the employee – ie only if they want it. Some employees are happy to just bash out those BOQs and don’t want to be leaders. Perhaps reward these guys with days off and late starts if they worked the graveyard shift to meet a deadline.
Provide a vibrant, clean and refreshing environment. Paint some walls, invest in some new workstations, put in a bar, hang up some pictures! You spend so much time at work so you want to feel good in your seat. Working around dusty furniture and old coffee stains won’t inspire anyone. Don’t just have a flash reception to impress your visitors – have a flash office to impress everyone.
Celebrate successes with social functions, lunches and Friday night drinks. You can combine staff events with networking events like the AIQS Lawn Bowls evenings or the now legendary RICS Curry Night. Get some T-shirts made and go ten pin bowling – always good for a laugh. Plan the Christmas party at a special venue and have a theme so everyone is talking about it for years to come. A bonded and happy team is a productive team.
Communicate constantly. Don’t let small issues eat someone alive until its too late. We can usually resolve differences if we want to.

If employees have a clear direction, are paid fairly and enjoy their work environment then they will stay. However if the culture is week and they are mismanaged then they have plenty of other options which are just a mouse click away!