Building a quantity surveyor career on the job

In his seven years with Team Robertson, Shaun has gone from graduate apprentice to lead quantity surveyor on a £66.5m construction project. We caught up with him to find out more about his career development in that time.

Starting an early career in construction

Leaving school aged sixteen, Shaun entered work through a scaffolding apprenticeship. Four years on, he had aspirations to study project management at university. “Unfortunately, it wasn’t to be. Although I had the CISRS Part 2 Scaffolder accreditation and site experience behind me, I didn’t have the grades.”

Instead he applied to do a HND in Building Surveying at Dundee & Angus College, an alternative route into project management. It was a move that led to a one-week work placement at Robertson and a change of decision on his next career move. “With an HND, I could finally go to university. But five days shadowing a QS here at Robertson Tayside changed all of that. I was really inspired by the scale of the construction projects and teamwork – and the genuine interest in my career ambitions.”

Shaun applied for a QS graduate apprenticeship with Robertson Construction Tayside, allowing him to fulfil his degree ambitions while he worked.

“It was definitely tough at times. Throughout the apprenticeship my weeks were full on with work and submitting coursework on time.

However I can't complain about the support around me. My workplace mentors would always ask about my studies and were keen to help and give me time when I needed it. I never felt isolated, only supported.”

And you achieved a first-class honours degree? "Yes, that was huge. Classroom learning never came naturally to me so I really had to put the effort in. Getting that result was proof to myself that I had what it takes to do the job."

From graduate apprentice to Senior Quantity Surveyor at Robertson

Shaun initially spent a year shadowing a senior quantity surveyor during the preconstruction phase of various projects, where he worked on bids and enquiries. “Experiencing the start of the project cycle was a brilliant grounding in that it helped me fully appreciate the need for rigorous attention to detail and how things got to site."

His next role was project assistant QS for a community hub build in Dundee where his focus changed to monitoring and cost control, and dealing with site-based challenges. The sum of that experience coupled with his natural talent saw him take his first lead QS role on a £2.5m nursery construction project. Coming to a standstill during COVID, Shaun says, “I had to work through contractual issues that we may never see again, but the project was delivered successfully and we maintained a great relationship with our customer.”

Following projects at the £20m Michelin Scotland Innovation Parc, Shaun has been working as senior quantity surveyor at the £66.5m Monifieth Learning Campus.

"Getting the green light for Monifieth was a huge deal for me. We worked hard to meet tight budget constraints during preconstruction which was a real challenge for ourselves and customer. So when the formal go-ahead came through, it felt brilliant."

Recognition of a standout early career

The Robertson Outstanding Contribution Awards (ROCAs) recognise and celebrate the outstanding contributions of our employees and teams over the past year. Nominated for Rising Star, Shaun faced some tough competition. So how did it feel winning it? 

"In a word, great. It wasn't my first time being nominated so I was looking forward to enjoying the evening, but as it drew closer to my category I realised how much I wanted to win. 

I feel as if it's recognition for the past seven years, for all the work – and people – that have taken me to where I am now in my career at Robertson."

Finally, why go for a career in construction? 

"For me personally, it's the variety of people I work with – customers, subcontractors and stakeholders, but especially my team at Robertson Tayside. 

And as well as the variety of roles there's so much scope to progress, whether that's a move up or a step sideways to get to where you want to be. I've gone from scaffolder to senior quantity surveyor for a Tier 1 construction company, something I didn't think was possible."