Henry Riley wins the first award to be announced at the 2008 Awards

Winner

Henry Riley

Even with the present downturn, the QS profession is still facing a skills, and competition to attract the best staff is still intense. Fortunately for Henry Riley, it has embraced the need to attract workers from non-traditional backgrounds, and the programme is already having fantastic results. The company last year established a training initiative to recruit workers from outside the industry, with opportunities tailored to lure both older workers and younger graduates, including a six-month travel option. The only candidate to leave the scheme since its inception has gone to pursue professional rugby in France – despite the many benefits of QSing, few would begrudge him that.

Runners-up

Carillion

Carillion may not be the first name you think of when it comes to quantity surveying, but after its acquisitions of Mowlem and Alfred McAlpine the firm employs more than 1,000 of them worldwide. But with differing corporate structures and more than 40 different job titles there was a clear case of “you say tomato” going on. All this ended with the creation of Carillion’s “commercial job family”. The initiative reduced the number of titles to 12, with clear definition of the skill level required for each – and training development programmes to match.

Franklin + Andrews

The training on offer at Franklin + Andrews ensures that learning opportunities are available for all workers, whether they are still at college or about to become the next company director. The firm offers sponsorship and a mentoring support network for trainees who are still in education, a path that is continued with the four-to-six year graduate development programme. For those for whom university is a distant memory of Prince and velvet trousers, don’t despair – the firm also offers regular business leaders and management courses.

Ridge

More than 5,000 hours were invested in training by Ridge last year – with 280 staff, this equates to more hours per head than the firm has ever carried out before. But racing out in front among its many initiatives – as you might expect from a programme developed with the Honda F1 Racing team – is the company’s team development programme. The two-day course focuses on self-motivation, leadership and teamwork. And we hear they’re not bad at changing tyres, either …

Wates

This company’s use of a dedicated QS training team marks it out from most other major contractors, and the results speak for themselves. The team provides technical training and development in areas such as surveying and current legislation, and it assists trainees in completing training manuals. Under its guidance, the firm’s commercial staff have achieved a 100% pass rate in the last intake for the APC final assessment, and more than 300 staff have benefited from tailored training.