Leadership of any sort starts with self-awareness and personal character. That is overlaid with a range of skills developed through deliberate practice.

Leading in the construction sector requires some particular skills. It’s an industry full of deeply practical people who prefer to get things done than sit around talking about stuff. Communication has to be clear and precise. Leaders have to be technically credible, good problem solvers and reliable decision-makers. But that’s not enough.

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How the best Construction leaders get it right

The best leaders command the respect and loyalty of their team and that’s because they’re people leaders, able to get the best from their team. That involves the soft skills of coaching, teaching, and managing poor performers. They get the right balance between micro-managing and being too hands-off – they give people room to learn and grow but are quick to help when they see it’s needed.

They lead themselves well. They’re organized in themselves, they remain calm under pressure and they operate with integrity – they do what they say they’re going to do.

And that translates into how they interact with others – their team, subbies, suppliers, and clients. The trick in managing people is knowing how to navigate between being directive on the one hand and hands-off on the other. If you’re always hands-off, people will take advantage and risks will escape your attention, but if you’re too directive people won’t develop. Both are good in the right place, but how do you decide? This is where self-awareness and personal character come in: in that moment of choice, the good leader is deliberate about being either directive or hands-off. Paying attention to what’s really going on (what we call the Active Mindset), they decide that the best course for the business and this person is… then they choose. Learn more about the essential skills of managers in Construction here.

How do you lead in construction? By being fully present, paying full attention and being focused on what’s really happening in front of you.

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