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Chartered Surveyor Marks 160th Anniversary with Ambitious Targets

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Leading Chartered Surveyor firm, Bruton Knowles, which has 10 offices across the UK including in Cardiff, has stepped up its recruitment campaign across all areas of the business as it sets out the trajectory for achieving its 2022 growth ambitions.

The 200 strong firm wants to expand its workforce by 160 staff in what is set to be a landmark year as it celebrates its 16oth anniversary.

Bruton Knowles’ client base has been rapidly expanding since the company bounced back from the shock of the first pandemic lockdown and following a hugely successful restructure.

This saw the establishment of four National Teams: Utilities and Infrastructure, Building Consultancy, Commercial and Valuation, with each focusing on core growth areas of the business.

Now, Bruton Knowles wants to revitalise its recruitment efforts to capitalise on the abundance of new projects. By bringing in new talent from across the sector, the firm aims to complement the existing high calibre workforce, ensuring the exacting standards of client requirements continue to be exceeded.

In the past six months, Bruton Knowles has seen its headcount grow by 20%, meaning it has already smashed its 2021-22 15% recruitment target. This was announced at the outset of the firm’s new financial year last August.

Since then, 40 new staff have joined the business, 34 of which sit within the National Teams. Utilities and Infrastructure is by far the fastest-growing division, at 38%, with 15 additional hires coming on board.

Twelve have also now joined valuation, four building consultancy and three commercial. The remaining six new starters enrolled in corporate, rural, and planning roles.

This new cohort of Bruton Knowles’ employees has joined in positions, spanning all levels of the business, and at all stages of the career spectrum. They range from assistants to technicians, graduates to associates and senior surveyors, all bringing with them a wealth of professionalism and expertise.

HR Director, Neil Young, who spearheaded the design and delivery of Bruton Knowles’ recruitment programme in line with the overarching people strategy, explained:

Based on the current pattern of growth across Bruton Knowles’ work portfolio, our forecasts predict an upward recruitment trend. This is reflected in our HR plans and means staff numbers are now higher than they were at pre-pandemic levels.

“We continually review and adjust our recruitment targets to ensure our overall HR approach is strategically aligned with Bruton Knowles’ commercial objectives. Our intention is to grow our staff base even further across the South Wales area during this milestone year whilst also empowering all employees to meet their full potential.”

Despite growing concerns about rising prices and workforce deficiencies, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors recently reported the UK construction sector continues to show resilience following the combined economic shocks of Brexit and the global Covid-19 pandemic.

Yet last autumn, the Office for National Statistics reported that vacancies in the construction sector hit an all-time high since records began in 2001, with in excess of 40,000. The skills shortage across the industry continues to be well documented, so it comes as no surprise that quantity surveyors remain on the UK’s shortage occupation list.

Despite this, however, Bruton Knowles continues to buck the trend. By positioning itself as an innovator in both employment practices and workforce systems, it is leading the sector in the quest to modernise this time-honoured career.

Young continued:

I would like to extend a very warm welcome to all our new starters who join Bruton Knowles at a pivotal time for the business. It is a tough recruitment market at present, but we believe our employment offer is second to none.

“Over the course of 2022, we want to maintain momentum by welcoming more new recruits and coaching all our staff along the way. Enabling them to realise their career aspirations whilst delivering the best possible advice to our clients is a priority for the business. We look forward to helping to shape the future surveying workforce as the profession moves into a new era of delivery.”

All vacancy details can be found on the jobs page of Bruton Knowles’ website.

Business News Wales