KBzine: the original kitchen and bathroom industry e-news - since 2002
28th January 2021
We strongly recommend viewing KBzine full size in your web browser. Click our masthead above to visit our website version.
Soapbox: Poor project managers: Are they contributing to the rise in insolvency?
Mike Smith, managing director of Ripley Training, argues that the increase in the number of insolvency cases in the construction sector, is linked to poor management...
"The UK's construction output was worth almost £164 billion last year, more than double its recorded value at the start of the century. This is all powered by the 2.7 million people working in the sector, which has seen a sharp increase in the number of new workers thanks to a construction boom in the wake of new legislation.
But of that figure, only around 47,000 are project managers, while there are over five times as many woodworking and interior fitting professionals. Such a small percentage of the overall workforce have a huge impact on those working beneath them, especially on new hires, and are cited as the main reason that workers change companies, or leave the sector entirely.
In a recent study, 22% of construction employees said they 'imagined killing their boss.'
Construction project managers need to be aware that old managerial techniques may not work when taking on new staff... Without meaning to, experienced project managers may actually be harming staff retention, and damaging their companies just by using outdated management methods.
In a journal entitled 'Investigating Employee Turnover in the Construction Industry: A Psychological Contract Perspective', published in 2016, authors identified what predicts employee's turnover in the construction industry - emotional exhaustion emerged as the top reason for the younger construction workers to exit the construction site.
This can be widely attributed to being poorly managed, something which can easily be improved. The cost of this can be both financial and personal, having an impact on team morale as well as on the bottom line. One of the best ways to reduce this is to invest in project managers, helping them to learn skills both they and the company can profit from.
A small invest of time and resources in building the foundations of skilled and professional leaders and managers in the industry will provide an excellent return on investment in a matter of months. This is reflected in how both new and experienced project managers apply the Ripley Training programmes in learning new skills to maximise performance, employee and contractor engagement, better retention, and improved profitability."
6th July 2018