Posted On November 23, 2017
G&T surveyor scoops award at Teambuild UK Future Leaders competition
By Ben McCartney
Ben McCartney is a project surveyor in the G&T Leeds office and part of G&T’s NextGen. Following the completion of an summer placement at our London headquarters, Ben returned to university to complete his degree before starting in the Leeds office in 2014.
Last weekend Ben competed in the Teambuild UK Future Leaders competition and was part of the winning team for the Procurement, Contract and Risk Strategy award. Teambuild focuses on developing leadership, communication and coordination beyond those of individuals’ skills.
The competition helps identify the way teams must work together in the construction industry, through a series of challenging scenarios common to construction projects across the UK. The contest is aimed at industry professionals under 30 years old and with less than six years’ post-graduate experience.
Read on to hear more from Ben and find out more about the competition…
Over the weekend we were given a number of challenging scenarios, along with a list of deliverables and a short timeframe to respond. As a team we had to react quickly and effectively to these tasks, before presenting to a panel of judges on the design, procurement and construction process of a real construction site. The proposal was based on the University of Edinburgh’s McEwan Hall Refurbishment and Bristo Square & Potterow Development.
My team consisted of individuals from Sweco, Hawkins Brown, Reiach and Hall, Hoare Lea and Skelly & Couch and as a multidisciplinary team we had to collaborate effectively and collectively present our proposals.
"I would recommend this event to any young industry professional who is considering getting involved in the future."G&T's Ben McCartney
For the Procurement, Contract and Risk Strategy presentation the brief required us to advise our mock client (The University of Edinburgh) of our proposed procurement route and how the updated CDM Regulations would affect them. Our proposal was presented in a board room scenario where two of our team had to deliver a ten minute presentation, followed by a further ten minutes of questions and answers.
The team elected me as one of the two people to deliver this presentation to the three-person judging panel and thankfully following all of our hard work we were awarded this fantastic prize.
"Big thanks need to go to my teammates and all the organisers, sponsors and other competitors who made this event happen."G&T's Ben McCartney
Overall, the competition was a very enjoyable and a worthwhile experience. It was valuable to receive constructive feedback from a range of senior industry professionals on individual presenting styles and how we worked and managed as a team.
Find out more about Teambuild UK
Ben is part of G&T’s NextGen, an initiative that champions the next generation of property and construction professionals. Find out more about our programme.