Daniel Williams
NAME Daniel Williams
JOB Assistant design manager
EMPLOYER BAM Construct UK Ltd
AREA OF WORK Construction management
Halfway through my degree I realised I’d probably chosen the wrong subjects, but I decided to commit myself to completing my studies and look to change direction following graduation. Essentially, I’d grown up and practicality kicked in: I didn’t like the prospect of living in squalor as an artist! I had also gained six summers of on-site work experience and, as I loved the physical nature of the work, construction seemed the logical career choice.
In the December of my final year I applied to a number of big companies with graduate intakes. I had a first-stage interview with my current employer in the following February and then a full-day assessment involving group challenges, a presentation and an interview with a director. I was offered a position on the construction management graduate scheme in March and arranged to start work a month after graduating.
I think my honesty and maturity about changing direction helped me demonstrate how committed I was to get into construction management, along with my work experience and a good fall-back plan – a place on a construction masters degree course.
My role
My first six months of a rotational scheme were spent in estimating. This was followed by a site management placement – I decided to stay on longer to see the project through to completion. I was then asked to try design management on a project that was local to where I lived at the time; I joined the project 18-months ago during tender stage and it is now nearing completion.
The key to unlocking the opportunities for non-cognate graduates in the construction industry is to be proactive.
My main responsibility is to ensure we have the necessary design before we need to build on site. Co-ordination must often take place weeks, even months, before things are actually constructed – factoring in sufficient time for reviewing, revising and finalising information to meet the construction programme. While the architect provides the conceptual design, the details are often designed by many different subcontractors and specialists. It’s therefore vital to manage the flow of information; ensuring designers have the right information and that the design is sufficient, meets the original specification and is communicated to the right people so it is built correctly.
I take a great deal of satisfaction from actually seeing such a dramatic and landmark building constructed – it even makes the headaches along the way and my never-ending ‘to do’ list seem worthwhile!
Learning curves
I started learning everything from scratch at work, as well as studying for my postgraduate diploma and working towards accreditation with the CIOB – but my employer has supported me throughout. They assisted with all my tuition costs and allowed me a week of study leave every three months to intensively study at university. Studying after a day at work is tough, but I believe that you only get out what you put in.
My advice
The key to unlocking the opportunities out there for non-cognate graduates is to be proactive. Skills shortages aren’t just in the trades – you could bring a fresh perspective to management. I found that talking to someone face-to-face allowed me to explain my enthusiasm for construction far better than on paper or online. I sent out a number of applications for entry-level jobs as well as graduate schemes to main contractors; at the end of the day I felt I had nothing to lose.