McDevitt & Co Blog

How to Win the War for Talent The UK construction industry faces significant challenges in both recruitment and retention of skilled workers. With an aging workforce, currently 20% of trades people are over 50, with a further 15% in their 60’s.  Prior to Brexit, according to the CITB, 17% of the workforce were born outside the UK, many of whom have now left.   On-going, technological advancements such as BIM and AI, will likely have an impact on job roles and maybe even numbers employed. This coupled with changing working patterns mean companies must adopt innovative...

An effective leader possesses a combination of skills, qualities, and behaviours that enable them to guide and inspire their team towards a common purpose.  Before looking at the attributes of effective leaders, it is my experience and opinion that the construction industry doesn’t invest nearly enough in developing these skills.  If you are lucky, you may have had in your career some experienced leader “take you under their wing”.  If not, then you might have been fortunate enough to be able to observe at close hand an effective leader.  Out with these avenues there is very little...

Why you Need a Mentor No matter where you are on your career journey, it doesn’t matter if you are starting out or if you are now an experienced business leader, we all need help from time to time.  Engaging with an experienced mentor can be a highly effective and cost-efficient way of getting the support you need to overcome the challenges you will inevitably face. I have been fortunate throughout my career to have benefitted from tapping into the knowledge and insights that mentors can provide.  Even today I still have three or four people that I regularly consult with, to bounce...