Management and Business Skills in the Built Environment

Citation

Inalhan, G. (2002), "Management and Business Skills in the Built Environment", Facilities, Vol. 20 No. 3/4, pp. 164-165. https://doi.org/10.1108/f.2002.20.3_4.164.3

Management and Business Skill in the Built Environment is one of the books in The Built Environment Series of Textbooks (BEST) published by E&FN Spon Publishers.

The series addresses the training methods now being adopted by the construction industry which are indicative of the need for change in today’s dynamic market place, which is attempting to transcend the professional barriers that are typical within the industry. This can be seen in contemporary courses directed at a multi‐disciplinary approach, which aim to lead to better collaboration in practice through the insights gained from working together.

The majority of employers in today’s employment market are looking for graduates with not only a good degree but also a range of transferable skills and vice versa. It is also in the interest of graduates to intervene and to stake a greater control over their own development. This book is intended to be for the use of undergraduates, other students and professionals involved in the built environment who wish to develop these business skills and in particular management skills. The overall aim of this book is to encourage aspiring built environment future professionals and managers to evaluate their knowledge, skills and personal qualities and to develop strategies for their continuing development.

Built environment students and practitioners work in demanding, challenging and competitive environments. They need to manage their time, their resources and themselves if they are to succeed. They are expected to balance their technical, human and conceptual skills. Indeed for the future professional who wishes to play a greater part in the management of the business it is important to gain a broader knowledge of the industry and to develop the conceptual skills needed in seeing the wider picture and not just their profession i.e. architecture, quantity surveyors, engineers etc.

The chapters in the book are organized around three themes:

1. (1)

    Chapters 1, 2 and 3: Learning how to manage yourself.

2. (2)

    Chapters 4, 5 and 6: Learning how to build and work in teams.

3. (3)

    Chapter 7, 8, 9 and 10: Learning about the principal areas of business management.

Each of these themes is illustrated by examples and work pieces drawn from the built environment. Checklists are provided in each chapter to help to reflect on the person’s level of knowledge and understanding of this subject. (How it is organized … .)

The starting point for making personal development is self‐knowledge. The key is to have an understanding of where you are now, a vision of where you want to be, and perspective of the ways of getting there. So the book is designed to help to reflect upon learning, to explore ways of learning and to make plans for personal growth and development. This book would be a good starting point for the relevant persons to begin this growth and development.

In a rapidly changing world where techniques and custom and practice can date soon after discovery, where organisations are constantly changing shape and style to cope with rapid technological, economic, political and social change, there is a need for managers and built environment professionals who know how to learn, who are self‐aware enough to know when they do not know, and who have the confidence and personal substance to be able to initiate the required learning activites when necessary.