More diversity, training, market reach and entrepreneurial thinking needed within the land, property and built environment sector
BTY is taking part in the fireside chat today during the RICS Summit of the Americas keynote on the Future of the Profession. Our focus is on the demand for talent – and how we at BTY have committed to diversity, education and an entrepreneurial mindset to help us expand our reach across services, sectors and geographic markets.
We often hear about the ‘demand for talent’ being most acute within the tech sector. The competition for great and global talent, is no less intense in the land, property and built environment sector, as current RICS President Amanda Clack noted in her introduction to Building Inclusivity: Laying the Foundations for the Future, a joint report issued by the RICS and Ernst & Young.[1] Consistently within the message, it’s noted that building a diverse workforce is key to addressing the demand for talent.
MORE DIVERSITY
The report noted that in 2016, just 13% of RICS professionals in the UK were women and only 1.2% identified as Black, Asian and minority ethnic. Across Canada, 10.5% of estimators and 7.9% of construction managers in 2006 were women.[2] In the U.S., the figures were 12.7% and 7.9%, respectively.[3] In 2006, 12.2% of Canada’s construction workforce comprised women.[2] In the U.S., women accounted for 8.9% of the construction workforce. [3]
Diversity is inherent from the ground up at BTY, a global infrastructure and development consultancy firm with offices in North America, Europe and the Middle East.
We have more than double – and in some cases triple – the percentages of women within the various categories noted above, and 10 times that of the Black, Asian and minority ethnic figures for the United Kingdom. We call that a good start. But it’s only part of the challenge – and part of the solution – to adapting to change.
MORE TRAINING, EDUCATION, SPECIALIZATION AND SERVICES
The competition for the best and brightest is intense and there is an increasing scarcity of qualified professionals in our industry in North America. As such, providing the education, training and mentoring that enables our people to develop new skill sets and new areas of specialization is part of our DNA – and embodied in our policies and programs.
Investing in our employees’ continued development has, in turn, supported the growth of our fully integrated service cycle, our entry into new sectors and markets, and our ability to deliver complex, high-profile projects across the globe. The chance to develop new skills and to work on such projects has proven to be a powerful draw for smart and ambitious professionals at BTY.
As an example, in little more than a decade, BTY has evolved from providing standalone PPP Advisory services in Canada, to developing expertise critical to delivering full life-cycle project solutions across the globe.
Our hard work and commitment to our DNA has helped us to achieve the accolade of #1 Technical Advisor in North America (and #3 globally).[2]
Our diversity numbers are not solely tied to our inception and growth across Canada, which happens to have one of the world’s most diverse populations. Finding, recruiting and developing the best people – whatever their gender, ethnicity or sexual orientation – has been part of our strategy since our inception nearly 40 years ago.
MORE REACH INTO NEW MARKETS
This foundation of expertise has, in turn, enabled BTY to enter new geographic markets.
Over the past five years, we have opened seven offices across the U.S., and one each in Turkey, Egypt, Northern Ireland, Ireland and England. PPP Advisory Services are at the core of this expansion.
We are currently working on two of North America’s largest infrastructure projects, the US$4 billion LaGuardia Airport Terminal B Redevelopment in New York, and the CA$5.3 billion Eglinton Crosstown LRT in Toronto. BTY is also engaged on several multi-billion-dollar hospital projects in Turkey, which has one of the world’s largest healthcare expansion programs.
MORE ENTREPRENEURIAL CULTURE
Another foundational part of BTY’s success is our entrepreneurial culture.
We seek out people who demand the best of themselves, hold each other to account, listen to one another, and act upon opportunities to establish and expand relationships.
This energy and attitude – rooted in diversity, strengthened by education and training – fuels camaraderie and collaboration enabling us to meet challenges and master change as a team.
Sources:
[1] Building Inclusivity: Laying the Foundations for the Future
[2] BuildForce, The State of Women in Construction in Canada
[3] The National Association of Women in Construction, Statistics of Women in Construction
[4] InfraDeals League Tables, Q1 2017