8 January 2014

Costain is seeking more senior QSs in the Infrastructure Division who want to attain chartered status with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

The RICS introduced a ‘Professional Experience Route’ to obtain chartered status some years ago. This route is for the benefit of experienced QSs who neither need nor want to undertake the traditional method of gaining the distinction.

Now, with many eligible senior staff having taken advantage of the new route, Peter Tosland, Commercial Manager in Costain’s Highways sector, is keen to have more apply.

Around five years ago, the RICS acknowledged that many senior QSs did not gain chartered status via the lengthy process of keeping project diaries, instead recognising that their existing professional experience cleared most of the necessary hurdles.

Peter said that the RICS quickly followed this up with a new set of competencies that can be used with the Professional Experience route. These new competencies are more suited to personnel involved in infrastructure projects, recognising that the traditional route had been ‘buildings and/or consultancy led’, rather than ‘civils and/or contractor led’.

“It means when I ask the guys ‘Do you want to go through the Professional Experience Route?’ they have a better chance of getting through,” said Peter.

“When the new routes came out, I sent an e-mail to senior commercial staff, asked if they wanted to go through it and offered to liaise between the RICS and them, doing things such as reviewing their submissions, giving advice and challenging people to see it through.”

A steady trickle of senior personnel has taken these new methods of gaining chartered status, but there are still many more in the business that could benefit from the new routes and competencies.

 

Ends