On a building site, one of the most pivotal jobs is that of the project manager. It’s not always clear what responsibilities are covered by this role, so here we ascertain what a project manager does, and provide a level-headed evaluation of the pros and cons of taking on this role yourself.
“Project management is a catch-all term that covers just about every human endeavour,” says self-build expert Mark Brinkley. “Something as complex and time-consuming as a new house build requires a lot of project management.”
“Project management is one of those ‘facilitator’ jobs that brings a wide variety of responsibilities under a single umbrella,” adds chartered surveyor Bob Branscombe. “One good definition might be: ‘The process of managing construction projects by assembling and managing resources, ensuring team members are adequately briefed and contractually controllable, mitigating outside influences, and working to deliver the scheme on time, within the available finances, and to the required specification — all fit for purpose and saleable at an anticipated level of return.’ This is quite a lot to
